


How To Create A Destroyer In 404 Days

by Inkblot_Skyz



Series: Mu17iv3r53 [new SJaT series] [1]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: AU Corruption, Alternate Universe - Dreamtale (Undertale), Alternate Universe - Fellswap (Undertale), Alternate Universe - Reapertale (Undertale), Alternate Universe - Sciencetale (Undertale), Alternate Universe - Underfell (Undertale), Alternate Universe - Underlust (Undertale), Alternate Universe - Underswap (Undertale), Anti-Void (Undertale), Blue is the only one with a driver's permit, Blue isn't a fucking child guys, Ccino Needs a Hug, Cross made Ccino cry im telling mama-, Error is babey, Error just needs a hug, Errortale Sans Needs a Hug (Undertale), Errortale i guess??, Everyone Is Gay, Everyone Needs A Hug, Gen, Horror abuse tm, Horrortale Sans/Underlust Sans (Undertale), Im gay but Nightmare could smooch me and i wouldnt even mind oOP, Its a bad idea to start this again at the start of the school year but fuck it, Killer isnt smart you dumb octopus, M/M, Mu17iv3r53 - Series, Multi, Nightmare is Babey, Omega Timeline, Omega Timeline (Undertale), Reapertale Sans (Undertale), Save Screen, Save Screen (Undertale), Sciencetale (Undertale), This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things, Underlust Sans (Undertale), Underswap Sans (Undertale), Undertale aus, ___tale, apart from Ink he stinky, couldnt be me, everyones babey at this point, imagine being able to write Fresh, look at me learning how to tag things properly-, poor Razz cmon Classic give him attention, stinky inky umu, undertale - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-31
Updated: 2021-02-17
Packaged: 2021-03-06 21:41:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 20,880
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26215822
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Inkblot_Skyz/pseuds/Inkblot_Skyz
Summary: Error has no idea where or who he is.Strange skeletons who turn up one day after you're chased out your Multiverse? He can deal with that. Being mistaken for people he never was, seeing the things who chased you away, and falling for someone, however?He's working on it.[DISCLAIMER: I do not own any characters here unless stated, so take my interpretations with a pinch of salt][Error, Geno and Fresh belong to loverofpiggies @ Tumblr][Reaper/Death and Life belong to renrink @ Tumblr][Ink belongs to Myebi @ Tumblr + Instagram][Dream and Nightmare belong to Jokublog @ Tumblr][Blue belongs to the community, formerly owned by popcornpr1nce @ Tumblr + Twitter][Ccino belongs to black-nyanko @ Tumblr][Horrortale! Sans belongs to badapplestudios @ Tumblr][Dust belongs to ask-dusttale @ Tumblr][Killer belongs to Rahafwabas @ Tumblr][Lavender/Lust belongs to the community, formerly owned by nsfwshamecave @ Tumblr][X!Tale and its characters belongs to Jakei @ Tumblr + Instagram][Red/Fell belongs to underfella @ Tumblr (?)]
Relationships: AfterDeath - Relationship, Classic/Razz (implied), Geno/Reaper, Horrorlust - Relationship, Killer/Nightmare (implied), Lust/Horror, NightKiller (implied) - Relationship, Nightmare/Killer (implied), Past Red/Sci (implied), Past Sci/Red (implied), Past SciFell (implied) - Relationship, Razz/Classic (implied), Reaper/Geno, Rottenjoke (implied) - Relationship, horror/lust
Series: Mu17iv3r53 [new SJaT series] [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1733875
Comments: 57
Kudos: 80





	1. 1 - Error

**Author's Note:**

> This is basically just an Error origin story in my own interpretation that kicks off all the events in the future. Because of this, none of these events are CANON to any of the characters original stories, unless they are one of mine (chances are that, later on, this will actually be pretty common, but not here in this story).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh! Yeah! I'm back! Just expect any updates to be sporadic, because I'm starting my A-Levels on Thursday (3 days after this update)!
> 
> Sorry to anyone who actually enjoys this shit for being gone for so long by the way. It's been a long year for everyone, and I just haven't been able to focus on anything but one of my Pokemon games and the Sims, and whenever I did write different concepts for the reboot, they bored me and I just couldn't get into them for too long. Luckily, this one has been written on a scrap piece of paper for a few days and whenever I go into one of my daydreams, it's just been about this, so, HOPEFULLY, this one's gonna stick!

“ ~~**_ neooooeeooGo _ ** ~~ _!” _

Where was he?

_ “Not now,  _ ~~**_ Rperae _ ** ~~ _.” _

Everywhere around him was white...

“ _ Aww, come on,  _ **_ angel _ ** _.” _

Blindingly so...

“ _ You’re  _ **_ annoying _ ** _ , back off.” _

Wh. ..Who was he again?

“ _ I know you  _ **_ love _ ** _ me,  _ **_ hon _ ** _.” _

**_ L o V E . _ **

He crashed.

* * *

He felt...Different.

No. What was different? He couldn’t remember anything to base that on.

Headache...He winced and lifted his hand to press at his temple...

Did it always look like that? The other, too. Black bone up until the phalanges, which were yellow up top, and red at the bottom.

Who was he? He tried to remember a name.

“D...DeAth-Hh?” he glitched to no one.

No. That wasn’t him, he knew that much. That was someone else.

He looked around and found there was...Nothing to look around for. Just the same whiteness all about him. He had a feeling that he knew someone who would go crazy at the sight.

He hardly knew himself, though, so he felt he could be wrong.

He shakily got up. He noticed he had a red shirt on...

_ \- Wasn’t he meant to be bleeding? - _

...Red was...A cool color, in his opinion. Not in the literal sense.

Red was a. ..warm one...right?

Someone...Taught him  tha-

“Wow! Who’s this guy?”

He shrieked at the voice, falling back down onto the nothingness around him.

“H-heEEe-eLllOo-ooO-OOo?” he trembled. He wasn’t sure whether he liked the fact there was someone else here or not. The voice had echoed, making the space- or, uh, not-space around him seem much, much larger than before.

At least the solitude brought silence.

“Hihi! You’ve made quite the mess out there  lil ’ guy!” another voice answered with a chirp. He couldn’t tell where they were, unnerving him.

“ OuTt -t  WhhEe-eerE ?”

“Out of here! The Multiverse!” yet another answered irritably, with others chorusing with them. “Of course, what less can we expect from an  **_ Error _ ** ?!”

“W-w-WhaA-”

“Hey, leave the poor guy alone, he seems totally out of it!” the first retaliated, causing an argument to ensue. It was...So much...Too loud...

He crashed again.

* * *

This process repeated a few times. Voices would talk, argue, and become so loud he became overwhelmed and crashed.

How long had it been? Months? Years? Centuries? Millenia? He wasn’t sure, but it had been a while.

One day, however, one voice broke the cycle.

_ \- Why did he hate that word? - _

_ “ _ Soooo , Glitchy Boy, you  gonna stay here forever or what?” they questioned, bored. “I mean, it’s easy to leave, right, just get your strings out and use them to rip a hole in the code around ya.”

“Hey! No spoilers! Not everyone has seen the others!” another scolded.

He had no idea what they were talking about.

“Cmon Glitchy -  oowoo __ (he had no idea what that meant, but he decided not to question it)  _ - _ just reach up to your eyes and get your strings! -  ohwoah (again, he had no idea what they were saying) – You'll be able to leave for greener pastures!” another cooed, causing some of the more ‘aggressive’ voices to make vomiting sounds.

He inhaled glitchily, reached up and trailed his phalanges down his cheekbones, causing a weird sensation to dance up and down his spine. He pulled back his hands and he saw what must have been the strings they were talking about. They were very, very blue. 

Blue was a cool  color , too, this time literally as well as figuratively. But how did he know that?

That didn’t matter.

All he had on his mind was leaving this place.

“ _ Rip a hole in the code around me...” _ the skeleton thought, looking around him to see words and numbers in the air. So, he did exactly that...

...But nothing happened.

“Ohmygod this Error is a dumbass.”

“Hey, leave him alone!”

“Guys, shut up, he’ll crash again.”

“Error! Error! You need to think of where to go now! Think of somewhere nice and relaxing! Somewhere you could feel at home!”

_ Home. _

_ “ _ **_ Angel _ ** _ , I’m  _ **_ home _ ** _!” _

Home was a raven scaring the living daylights out of him, then transforming into another skeleton whose name and face he couldn’t quite place in his memories. Home was eating pie by a fire with a friend and loved one. Home was...

No.

_ Nonono. _

_ That was w _ **_ rong. _ **

**_ That wasn’t home. _ **

**_ That’s  _ ** **_ nOT _ ** **_ HIS HOME ANYMORE. _ **

**_ HE DOESN’T BELONG WITH HIM. _ **

~~**_ REPRPaE _ ** ~~ **_ IS GONE- _ **

He crashed again.

** <~o~> **

* * *

ted to the relieved coos and sighs of the nicer voices.

Home.

He had to get home.

What was home?

...Not whoever that was.

Maybe...A  star..? The smell of old books?

Just like that, a hole appeared where he’d tried to rip.

Voices applauded and praised him, but he was too breathless to respond as he got up and gazed at the sight before him.

A skeleton.

No, two of them.

One clad in stars, yellow and blue.

The other in shades of brown.

Both were very,  _ very _ , shocked to see him, though the former seemed more genuine.

“G-Geno?!”

“... Ii -I- iI -I... whOo-O’SsssS Ge-e-e-eee-eEno?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Psst! Hey! You! Yeah you! I'm thinking of a new AU concept to run alongside this once I pull my finger out my ass and finish Dimensions! The only hint towards it I'm giving for now is this; It involves magical girls ;))
> 
> [28/404]


	2. 2 - Shadows and Puppets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Goodness, he really gets around, doesn't he?
> 
> Pity about those shadows...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> damn, get ready for a triple update! school's somehow motivated me to write when i have no work to do!
> 
> good god i love 6th form

Where the hell was he now?   
He’d taken one look at the duo and something inside his head just...flipped out when they called him Geno, he guessed, and he was now standing in another, somewhat familiar place.  
It was lush, green, filled with plant life. Flowers were blooming, and small birds were flitting about, calling to one another.  
“Whoa, that was interesting! Who would’ve thought Error would go to Reapertale?” a voice cheerfully asked, making him temporarily freeze. Reapertale? Why was that so familiar? Why was this place familiar?  
“Hello? Sans? Are you there?”  
...Why was that voice so familiar?  
He sucked in a deep breath, cautiously, heading towards the voice that had called out. Maybe they knew what was going on, or where he was. He wasn’t so sure about asking who he was, though. He felt as though he didn’t want to know anymore. Besides, the voices had named him “Error” first, so he didn’t care for “Geno.”  
Whoever they were, anyway.  
He glitched as he padded along the dirt path he’d found himself on, reaching out to touch a white lily or two as he strolled by. Death’s flowers, he’d remembered, though he’d given up on finding out the significance when he’d arrived there. A few crimson roses stood tall by them too, but, for whatever reason, they repulsed him and he didn’t give them second glance. He liked the bluish-purple rhododendron bush he passed, though, so he stopped to look at them, even daring to take a few. He figured the person who made this garden wouldn’t mind.  
He soon stood and a small orchard, though he had no idea what was supposed to be growing on the trees as they bore no fruit at that moment. They did look young, though. He didn’t know how gardening worked, really, so he just shrugged it off. It might not even be an orchard, for all he knew.  
He stopped and leaned on the closest tree to him, resting his eye sockets and going deep in thought. Why did the voices name him “Error”? He wasn’t sure if he actually liked it, truth be told, but he knew he despised “Geno,” so it would have to do.  
He didn’t know how long he stayed there, but when he opened his eyes it was a little dark. He rubbed them, yawning and stretching.  
That’s when he saw it.  
He wasn’t exactly sure what it was, but he knew it was completely unfamiliar, unlike the everything but the white space he’d been in before. It looked like a shadow, except it very clearly had a physical form...Not that the physical form actually looked like it resembled anything in particular. It just did, but it constantly shifted and changed shape. He squinted at it so he could see it better, but yelped when he saw it multiply, not once, not twice, but three times. They started moving around, and anything they touched just...Vanished. He got his strings out in self-defence, but cried out in fear at what he saw.  
Those things hadn’t just gotten rid of the vanished objects form; the code had been entirely erased. When he’d ripped open the portal earlier on, it had just defragmented and joined to another string nearby. He wasn’t sure if getting rid of the code was even possible for him to do, but to see those...Things do it without even trying...  
He ran through the trees, panic setting in. If he couldn’t get out, and quickly at that, he knew for certain he would be gone too. And there was no way he would let that happen, not when he had no idea why he was even here yet!  
He ran past two people, not even caring anymore when they called out in surprise, not even when they called him by that name, not when the voices started cheering him on. Not even when a very familiar voice, more familiar than the one before, started wailing for him to come back. He just. Kept. Going.   
He skidded around a corner, screwing his eyes shut when he heard both people yell out, only to be cut off suddenly. He felt a pang of guilt, knowing he probably should have warned them, but it didn’t last long. He panted heavily, getting out his strings again and reaching forward and ripping harder than before to leave. The only place he wanted to go was safety.  
And, fortunately for him, that’s exactly where he was heading.  
But he hadn’t noticed when a microscopic piece of those things went through with him, ending up in a slightly different place to him altogether.

* * *

  
He opened his eyes in panic, looking around him. He was in the white space again, but, this time, there was stuff in it. He even noticed he was laying on...A bean bag? He wasn’t sure, but he was thankful for it. It was comfortable, after all.   
And then, he looked up, yelling out in fear at the little button eyes staring back down at him.  
Puppets.  
Or, erm, dolls, he supposed.  
He reached up, not expecting one of them to be dropped down, with a string much like his attached to it. He untied and held it, examining it closely. It didn’t look very happy, and had what looked like a golden tooth in its mouth. Its black jacket was similar to his, and he figured they were probably supposed to wearing the same shirt.  
But when he accidentally dropped the poor thing, he was well and truly scared.  
It broke, and it spilled Dust.  
He let out a series of glitchy, intermittent screams, and he quickly flung the thing far away from him, staring wide eyed at the pile of dust before him. Whose was it?! Why was it here?! Who the fuck in their right mind puts Dust in dolls?!  
He stumbled as he walked backwards away from it, landing back on the beanbag. He curled up and started sobbing, thoroughly exhausted and traumatised. He hugged himself tightly, ignoring anything and everything.  
A nap would fix his broken mind, surely?  
So he closed his eyes again, still sniffling, and he drifted into a long, dreamless sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [30/404]


	3. 3 - Stars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone seems to go missing nowadays, it seems.
> 
> What's the deal with this "Geno" guy, anyway?

Somewhere not so far from the new anti-void he slept in there was a panicked man-hunt ensuing. Someone who was very, very much like him had gone missing, and the distraught God who called himself his lover would stop at nothing to get him back home after he’d been given the all-clear to be with him. Naturally, as busy Gods such as him do, he enlisted only the finest of Monsters to find his love; The Star Sanses.  
Well, rather begrudgingly due to his past experiences with the shortest member, but he felt as though his pride could take it.  
And there they were now, searching in...Well, all the wrong spots for the missing skeleton, like some people do with their keys before leaving for work. Except this was part of their work..?  
Anyhow, you can tell that they were rather chaotic and unorganised as they went about it.  
The tallest and calmest of the trio, Dream, exactly identical to the tallest of the duo Error had first encountered, stood in thought, a small smile played on his lips, though that was nothing unnatural for him – the poor Guardian was cursed with only being able to feel positive emotions in the long-term, after all – and his companions payed it no mind as they rushed about energetically, both screaming for the lost Monster to no avail. Monsters nearby couldn’t do anything about it, no matter how strange they were – the tallest was their positivity guardian, the shortest was the one who aided the Creators, and the middle...Was their friend and, according to rumour, could kick-ass despite the innocent façade he kept up, so that was good enough for the inhabitants of this Multiverse.  
The smallest, Ink, who was exactly identical to the smallest of the first pair of Monsters Error had met, skidded to a stop, quickly fumbling with the vials attached to the sash-like thing that went over and across his body. He took the yellow, tracing over the purple but inevitably going for the orange one. He opened them up and quickly took a small sip from each; just enough to keep him going. Happiness and Confusion swept over him respectively, and he twisted his body to face Dream, grinning rather insincerely.  
“There’s no sign of him here in Underswap!”  
“Yeah, I know! - H-Hang on, why did we stop here anyway? Wouldn’t Blue know if Geno had come here?” he asked, raising his eyebrow. The middle skeleton crashed into a tree in surprise, rubbing his head.  
“I...I didn’t think of that.”  
“It’s ok, none of us did,” Ink reasoned, shrugging, making the other two sigh in exasperation.  
“It’s...It’s not ok though, Reaper already hates you, but if he starts to hate us for not finding Geno, we’ll be in hot water. I mean, Blue is a little safer because he’s actually attached to his AU still, but-”  
“Ok, ok, fine,” he nodded, turning to Blue and staring at him blankly. “Blue, you idiot, you fuc-”  
“-OKAY, MAYBE DON’T GO DOWN THAT ROAD!” Dream interrupted, smiling nervously. Blue frowned, pulling on his scarf and looking away from the taller skeleton, mumbling (“I’m not a kid, you guys can swear around me...”). Ink just shrugged again, looking down in his scarf for any notes.   
“Aha!” he yelled out suddenly. “Remember that Error guy? The one who keeps breaking everything with your brother and his gang?”  
“Oh, you mean the guy that stole Blue all those years ago?”  
“Hey! He didn’t steal me! He kidnapped me!”  
“Same thing, but yeah! Him! It says here I met him last week, and that he went to go see Geno! I don’t know why, maybe I mentioned him in passing?”  
“...Ink, you’re an idiot.”  
“A lovable idiot,” he corrected, making Blue chuckle.  
“Yeah, ok, oh Great Soulless Guardian. You don’t even have a moral compass outside of defending AUs!-”  
“L-Let’s not get into that,” Dream sighed, smile twitching into a temporary frown as he remembered the day he discovered Ink’s true intentions. It wasn’t pleasant, but he knew that he had to put up with it. And with the both of them working together, both the AUs and their inhabitants were safer. Blue cared for both, so he figured it was a well-rounded team.  
“Oh, right. Sorry Dream.”  
The trio were silent for a second, with Ink coughing slightly.  
“So, uh, shouldn’t we go find Error?”  
“Where would he even be?”  
“The Anti-Void, duh!” Blue chastised, hands on hips.  
“But...Doesn’t it take a while to get there? How do we get in without it taking ages?” Dream asked, twiddling his thumbs. Ink grinned, winking at the taller skeletons.  
“I know a shortcut!”

* * *

Error was sitting on the blue beanbag, frowning as he tried finger knitting with his strings, guided by the voices.  
Keyword being trying.  
“Nonono hang on, you’ve gotta move it there-”  
“No! Not that way!”  
“Why does it look like a duck?!”  
“Oowoo (he still didn’t know what that sound meant) - I like duckies-”  
“Wi-Ii_iLl yoU ChU-U-ucKle fuCK-cks shuT ThE He-e-ElL upP?!” he snapped, groaning at the tangled mess in his hands. He was trying to make his black jacket longer, as in the past few...Days, he guessed, he’d starting growing quite a bit. He figured this white space was much better for him than the other, and he knew he’d been there for at least a month or two before he pulled himself together. Crashing really took a lot out of h-  
A group of skeletons fell from the “ceiling” of his new home, all but one of them screaming and the smallest landing right on top of him, making him screech. Static crackled and it burned to be touched. He pushed the intruder off and scrambled to his feet, walking backward and away from the three, all of whom were groaning in pain.  
“W-Why did we go through the ceiling?!” the middle-sized skeleton yelled out, rubbing his skull. “Ugh, I already hit my head today...”  
“That was your own fault,” the smallest pointed out, getting to his feet and ignoring the look he received. He coughed a little, folding his arms and grinning. He...Looked like the smaller skeleton from before, Error realised, and the same could be said for both the taller ones. He put his arms down before realising he’d even put held them in front of him, relaxed somewhat by the familiar faces.  
“Uh-Hh...C-c-CanN I-I-I hElPp yoU?” he asked, squinting at them. The middle-one (that’s the only way he felt he could describe them, anyway) frowned, hands on hips.  
“Uh, yeah...Where’s Geno?” he asked, making him glitch in repulsion. He looked away, frowning in turn.  
“Well, everyone in the other places called me that, but I don’t-”  
“Other places?-”  
“Uhh, Ink? I don’t think this is our guy?” the tallest poked the smallest’s side. “Ink” turned to face him, confused. Error thought his eyes were nice, but payed the thought no mind.  
“That’s...Impossible! We’re still in our Multiverse’s Timeline, so...” he trailed off, starting to grin as he thought. “Another Error...Is that possible..? He doesn’t seem...” he looked up and met the glitch’s eyes, both gazing at one another. Ink slowly started to grin.  
“I...I don’t know what’s happening,” he confessed, nodding, but still looking straight into Error’s eyes. The middle-one and the tall-one’s eyes both widened, but he continued before they could interject. “This...Is the most puzzling thing I’ve ever encountered! It’s so exciting! I’ve never heard of anything like this happening before!-” he gagged suddenly, suddenly spewing a jet-black substance. The middle-one groaned, facepalming. Error took a few steps backward, alarmed. Ink finished, coughing and laughing.  
“Ooh boy, that hasn’t happened for a while!” he chuckled, gasping for air. “But, still! This is really interesting!”  
He paused, looking down at Error’s slippers.  
“Oh, uhh...Sorry about your feet, I kinda splashed ya.”  
And, with a quick glance downward, he crashed for what felt like the hundredth time in the past few days alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [37/404]


	4. 4 - The Chapter That Skye Forgot To Name

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Trust is a fickle thing.
> 
> One could argue that existance is too, though...
> 
> ...Right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i appologise for the title, i honestly didn't know what to call this one hshshshwhashsh

When he rebooted, he was laying down on a bed. It was comfy; even more so than that beanbag before. He sat up, stretching, and looked around, wincing to see the brightly decorated room around him.  
“Those Sanses kidnapped you, I think,” a voice explained, making him panic.  
“K-k-kIdnapp-p-p-pEd?!” he shrieked, flinging himself out of bed and rolling on the floor, stumbling to get back up. He looked around again, half-expecting one of the skeletons from before standing menacingly in the corner.   
Instead, he saw the middle-one looking up from a cookbook at him, sitting in an armchair and frowning. Error started walking backwards away from him, and his expression softened.  
“W-Wait! It’s ok! You’re safe! You’re-”  
“G-eEET AWaY-Y-Y FROm-mM MeeE!” he wailed, glitching and bringing out his strings in self-defense. The other skeleton put his book down and stood up, putting his hands up in front of him as he slowly made his way to the other.  
“N-No, no, it’s ok, it’s fine, you’re safe...” he tried soothing, stopping a few feet away from Error, who was breathing heavily. He looked up into his eyes, his own eye-lights softening. “You’re ok...You’re safe...We just took you somewhere more comfortable than the Anti-Void...”  
Error just stared down at him fearfully, shaking and tearing up.  
“p-Ple-easE...” he begged, not wanting the smaller of the two anywhere near him. The voice said he kidnapped him along with the other two, after all. The middle-one smiled softly, nodding.  
“Ok...It’s ok, I’ll back up,” he shuffled backward, making sure not to trip over his own feet in the process. “...So, uh, I’m Blue...”  
“...E-E-ErRo-Or...” the glitch responded. Blue nodded, expression turning sad.  
“I know, I know. You’re not the same but...You kinda still are.”  
“...WhA-”  
“-But that doesn’t matter!” he added hastily, smiling nervously. “U-Uh, anyway, Dream said to take you downstairs when you, uh, rebooted, I guess? S-So, are you willing to..?”  
“...o-OkK,” he nodded, still keeping his distance. Blue smiled warmly and walked over to the door, looking back and winking.  
“Well? Come on, pal!”

* * *

  
“What do you mean, you can’t find him?!” the God yelled angrily, yet the panic in his tone was clear as day. “He has to be around here somewhere! He couldn’t have just gone missing!”  
“Well, I found a note on my scarf about Error going to see him a few weeks ago, but when we went to the Anti-Void it was a completely new and different glitch-”  
“I couldn’t care for that whatsoever; I want Geno back! What would that glitch want with him, anyway?!”  
“I dunno,” Ink answered with a shrug, not elaborating when he was given a look to continue talking.  
“...Unbelievable. And you call yourselves Guardians?! You couldn’t even find my pre-”  
“Oh, uh, yeah, uh, sorry bud, Creator’s calling, I can’t just-”  
“No! Geno’s more important! Don’t you dare leave without finishing your job!” the God demanded, shaking slightly. Ink just shrugged again.  
“Sorry, Reaper, but AUs are my priority. If I don’t remember to carry on, someone’s probably gonna remind me,” he explained, getting his oversized paintbrush off of his back. “C’mon, Broomy, let’s get outta here.”  
“No! Don’t you-”  
And just like that, the AU Guardian was gone. Reaper slumped down, heartbroken.  
“-dare...” he finished, starting to tear up. “...That...soulless bastard...he doesn’t know what ‘m going through...” he sniffed, wiping the tears away. Sighing, he looked up into the vast, grey sky above him for a good while. He felt the pull to do his job, but ignored it, just as he had for past week or so. It was his damn job that kept him from seeing his love, after all.  
He eventually stood up, adjusting his hood as he shivered. He supposed he had to do his job, anyhow.  
He teleported behind the poor Soul, not even bothering to check who they were. They froze as the blade of his scythe brushed against their neck, and he sighed.  
“Time’s up, ‘m sorry, yadda yadda y-”  
“Do it,” they whispered hopelessly. Their voice...It was like his.  
And they had his scarf, crimson red, long and beautifully flowing as if in a calm breeze.  
Reaper gasped for breath and, once untangling his weapon from the other, backed away in surprise.  
“...Geno..?” he called out quietly, making the other – exactly identical to his love – face him with a frown.  
“...Have...Have we actually met before?”

* * *

  
Error was sat on a bright red couch next to Blue, with the tallest of the trio – Dream, he knew now – sat on a small stool nearby. They were waiting for “Ink” to get back from a meeting with...Death, they said? So he just sat and muttered answers to the voices, not minding the look surprised look Dream gave him at first. Blue had smiled and said, “it must be something you all do.”  
Whatever that meant, anyway.  
“Marco!”  
“Polo!”  
“Ca-Aan yOu St-t-TopP pLay-YinG Mar-ar-aRco-O Po-olOo in-N m-My hE-e-eaD?” he mumbled, trying to focus on the finger knitting instructions another voice was giving him. It was more successful than the last attempt so far, and he could actually tell that he was trying to make an extension for his sleeves instead of a tangled mess now. Blue gave him occasional pointers, too, once he knew what the other was trying to make, but he mostly kept to his cookbook. Dream, meanwhile, was just smiling softly at his phone.  
Error hated how he was almost constantly smiling. No one could be that happy, surely? He was going to ask, but then the final member of the skeletal trio kind of just...Appeared, squeezing through the cup of water next to him. He screeched flinging himself to the other side of the couch and on top of Blue, glitching and apologising to the much smaller skeleton as he quickly got off of him.  
“Ink, please don’t do that, you’ve made a mess and startled our guest,” Dream scolded cheerfully, looking up from his phone and putting it back in his pocket.  
“Oh, uh, oops?” Ink chuckled sheepishly, not even bothering to spare a glance at the shattered glass next to him.  
“Y-Yeah, Ink, please don’t, Error’s pretty on edge as it is,” Blue wheezed out, still winded from the impact. The glitch took his cookbook from him and quickly used a piece of string to save the page for him, figuring it would be appreciated if the four of them were going to talk. He put his knitting in his inventory, glaring at Ink as he sat back down and scooting away as he sat next to him.  
“Anyway, so, Geno’s still missing-”  
“Actually, Reaper just texted me saying he found another Geno,” Dream interrupted calmly. “The new one said he’s been there for a few days, and this new Error here (he gestured to Error, who looked away from him as their eye-lights met) said he arrived...When?”  
“...Maybe that long ago too?” he shrugged, looking down at the carpet and how its patterns swirled instead of back up at any of the others. “I...I don’t know. There’s no way to tell.”  
“Well, either way, they turned up at around the same time.”  
“What does that even mean?” Blue asked, eyes bright with curiosity.  
“I don’t know,” Ink grinned, excited at the mystery. “I think Undertale might have had another Genocide Run whilst we started looking a few weeks ago, so maybe, as a result of it, some things in the Multiverse had to change to be shaped around it? Or, maybe another Multiversal Timeline-” he paused, gagging. Error scooted further away from him until he was right next to Blue, not wanting another stain on his clothes. His slippers were bad enough. Ink quite literally swallowed the urge down, and groaned.   
“Sorry, sorry, got excited. But, anyway, whilst I don’t know for sure what has happened and why, something has for us to get a new Error and Geno. It just means we get to figure something else out!”  
“I might ask Moon if anything similar has happened over in Dreamswap,” Dream nodded, thinking. “Maybe alternates from other Multiverses, too? I doubt that Marvul would know...Maybe Halluciv would...”  
“Oh, we could ask different alternates of Sci for their opinions, too!” Blue chimed in. “Our Sci might know of different possibilities, too!”  
“Blue, you genius! Oh, and Dream too, I guess-”  
“-Ah Ink, you’re such a kind Monster-”  
“-Shut up Dream. Anyway, now that’s sorted, since we’re probably gonna just go with asking around,” Ink paused, looking at Error. The glitch just frowned at him, still upset with him startling him with his entrance, and quite possibly for landing on top of him when they first met, too. Ink smiled in turn, scratching at the stain on his cheek.  
“Tell us, Error; how did you get here?”

* * *

  
The glitch sat there in the broken world he was in, feeling somewhat lost. Broken code was scattered all around him.  
Something about this was familiar.  
Very, very familiar.  
But he just wanted to go home.  
No...He didn’t. Home was gone, right?  
He hated this. He hated that he had turned into this.  
...But on the other hand, he was filled with a sick fascination about it.  
He wanted to know what else he could do.  
He grinned, starting the cackle.  
“ _ **[S-soO Be-Ee It-t]**_ S-SoO Be-Ee It-t _{S-SoO Be-Ee It-t}_ ,” he smiled, sighing. He caught a glance of his reflection in a nearby broken mirror. He glitched in curiosity and repulsion. He was practically melting. A twisted smirk made its home on his features.  
“ _ **[A-A-AhH, whAaTt-t-t a F-F-FaAtAlLl s-staAt-te t-t-ToO beE in-n-n]**_ A-A-AhH, whAaTt-t-t a F-F-FaAtAlLl s-staAt-te t-t-ToO beE in-n-n _{A-A-AhH, whAaTt-t-t a F-F-FaAtAlLl s-staAt-te t-t-ToO beE in-n-n}_ ,” he chuckled glitchily to himself, voice echoing yet not going anywhere in particular.   
And with a flicker and sound of delayed static, he left the broken, decaying world around him.  
But, what no one knew, was that every last bit of code here would be erased in mere minutes.  
After all, no one ever suspects shadow-like creatures.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whew, triple update over! let's hope next week is as productive as this one was!
> 
> [edit, 10/6/20: it wasn't lmaoooo]
> 
> [39/404]


	5. 5 - nyesn't

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Feelings are on everyone's mind lately.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i present to you yet again the shitshow that is how i name chapters
> 
> im sorry

A week.

Everything had settled down a week ago,  Multiversal wise.

Code fragments were calm, timelines were becoming  calmer , and everyone who could feel happy was (though Error was still a little confused and unnerved by everything every so often).

And Ink thought it was weirdly boring.

He shouldn’t be bored, really. The whole “How did Error get here?” spiel was being worked on by everyone – including himself – and he initially found it so exciting he’d thrown up  several times in succession, much to Dream’s dismay as he accidentally got a few drops on it on his cape.

But, see, that was the thing about Ink. His attention span was  so  _ short _ he could barely hold an interest in, well,  _ anything _ .

And he’d decided that he’d had enough.

“You want me to what?!”

“Make me feel,” Ink shrugged. “Once this is all over, anyway. I’ve been meaning to ask you for a while. I’m hoping it’ll improve my memory...retention skills? Oh, and it might give me a better attention span too, so I won’t get bored so much!”

Dream sighed, still smiling softly. He knew to believe that this was just an impulsive decision on Ink’s part, but he didn’t know whether to treat it as one. On the one hand, he wasn’t sure if anyone would be prepared for an emotional Ink; he was chaotic enough as he was. But, if he could feel, if he could empathise...

“Uhh, Dreamy? You’re doing your thinking face, is it that hard to decide whether you should?”

“Apparently so,” he chuckled sheepishly, feeling a minute flash of embarrassment. “There’s just one thing though, Ink.”

“Oh? Do tell.”

“If you start to feel...”

* * *

Reaper had forgotten how much he enjoyed courting. And this Geno, once Reaper had decided that he could be a second chance thrown his way by the Multiverse, was much more receptible to his affections than the one before him.

A glass lily here, some pure, genuine praise and compliments there, and Geno was very quickly wrapped around the God’s finger, if a little confused as to why he was getting this attention.

But after endless timelines of grief, all he knew was that he could welcome such... _ love _ with warm arms.

At least, that’s how he thought he  _ should _ .

In all honesty, Reapers unwavering affection  _ scared _ him. He could hardly remember what love felt like over LOVE. He could hardly remember an affectionate smile over a crazed, murderous gaze.

So, with what Determination remained flowing through his magic, he decided that, next time, he’d ask Reaper why he was getting all this out of nowhere.

But, as his courage grew thin, that kept on getting pushed back. He’d ask him next time...No, maybe next  time..? No, no, definitely next time...

He just  _ couldn’t do it _ .

He didn’t know why, and  _ that _ scared him too.

But over time, due to his cowardice, he started to grow used to the God’s loving gestures. And he  _ wanted _ them; oh, he wanted to be held by him so  _ badly _ . He wanted to do so much with him, he wanted to spend the rest of his “life” with him. It was rather funny really, considering he was Death.

But, still, he couldn’t help but wonder from time to time: “why me?”

And, miraculously for him, he managed to work up the courage to ask.

Unfortunately, Reaper could only look at him with a sad smile, shaking his head.

But now he’d asked the one time, there was no way he would relent. He persisted, asking every visit he’d get. But, always, he only ever got Reaper’s sorrowful smile with regret laced in his eyes.

Until, one day, he finally got an answer.

“Why do I love you?” Reaper finally sighed, locking his eye-light with Geno’s. He gave him that same sad smile. “Will it really give you comfort to know?”

“I...Yeah, it would,” Geno affirmed, wanting to know whether this would be his chance to finally know. “I just...Don’t understand...Why would a  _ God _ out of all the monsters out there want some _...glitch _ like me? _ ” _

“My dear, to me? You’re the very definition of perfection.”

“But- But  _ why _ ?” he pressed on, growing frustrated. He just  _ knew _ something was wrong with Reaper’s answer. He just didn’t know what it was.

The God just stared blankly, not even focusing on the skeleton before him anymore.

“...I. ..I need to go,” he said, frowning as he stood up from the floor of the Save Screen. “I just got a-”

“You’re not leaving until I get an answer!” Geno huffed, grabbing a part of Death’s cloak. He looked down at him, seeming intimidating to the glitch from his viewpoint.

And then, he said the words he never,  _ ever _ wanted to hear from someone he loved.

“Angel, you’re being  _ selfish _ . Please let me go so I can do my job.”

Selfish.

He was  _ selfish _ .

The ever-dying skeleton let go, numb with shock and self-hatred, allowing the God to leave.

And once he was gone, he  _ wept and wept _ .

Because he was selfish, and didn’t deserve a single thing  _ anyone _ gave him.

Let alone that bastard God he’d somehow fallen for.

* * *

Ccino sighed as he turned the sign in the café to say “We’re closed!” in its fancy, calligraphic writing. A cat meowed for his attention, which he absent-mindedly gave as he passed, collecting a few empty coffee cups on his way to the sink. 

Scrub, rinse, dry, repeat. It was ever repetitive, much like his daily routine. Wake up, skip breakfast, work, eat a dismal ready-meal that barely provided for his magic, sleep. The only thing that could break the cycle every-so-often was his sporadic shopping trips when he ran out of instant noodles and the like. Repeat until he miraculously dusted like everyone in his old timeline. 

He missed them. He wished he was with them. But that  _ Destroyer _ kept him from that. Now he was just living in the ever-expanding Omega Timeline with a cat café and small apartment upstairs. But he was thankful – of course he was thankful. He didn’t truly want to die. He just wanted to stop existing.

He went into his small, personal cupboard of food, grabbing some tinned soup. He grimaced as he looked at the label; minestrone. He shrugged and put it on the counter, ignoring the cats rubbing their fluffy cheeks on his legs. He hardly thought it was sanitary for them to be in here, but that  gray kid said it was fine so that was good enough for him.

“Where’s that damn tin-opener...?” he mumbled, opening several draws to no avail. He sighed, side glancing at the soup beside him.

He decided he wasn’t all that hungry anyway.

He put the soup back, grabbing a croissant that was going a little stale from the display. It had been made this morning, and someone had to eat it, right?

His teeth tore into the hardening delicacy, pastry crumbs falling and decorating his stained, cream coloured turtleneck. He almost tripped three times in succession due to the cats at his feet, and decided to shoo them away before going upstairs. He didn’t exactly want to reach the headlines for dying after falling down the stairs because of those damn felines.

He pushed open his door, ignoring the muffled noises coming from the co-owner's door. He hated the damn dog monster with a passion, and was still confused as to why he even set up the establishment. His first guess was to “pick up chicks” or something, and the noises coming from the other side of his wall only solidified that notion.

He sighed in disgust as he flopped onto his bed, curling up into a ball and reaching for his headphones as he nibbled on his pastry.

Listening to the classical radio would solve his problems.

* * *

The King of Darkness grumbled as he peered into different AUs from his throne. Killer – his decided favourite of his minions, considering he had more of a brain and actually  _ showed _ it – was sitting on the armrest next to him, crunching on some popcorn.

Aside from his munching, it was quiet.

“...Where the hell is that abomination?”

“Maybe he crashed?” Killer answered, shoving a fistful of the sweet-n'-salty treat. “He’s bit of a fucktard in that respect.”

“He wouldn’t take this long to reboot,” he sighed, grimacing as several kernels landed on his  goopy surface. “Killer, could you  _ not _ ?”

“Oh. Yeah, whatever, sorry.”

Silence befell before the two, though Killer’s incessant munching continued, much to his Highness’ displeasure.

Soon, however, the big, dark doors at the end of the throne room burst open, with one skeleton with a gaping hole in his head being preyed upon by another with his hood up. The King let out an exasperated sigh as the latter launched several bones at the other, making him screech out in pain. Killer snickered, starting to throw some of his popcorn at the poor skeleton.

“Must you behave like children?”

“Aw,  cmon Nightmare, they’re just  havin ’ fun!” Killer protested.

“I. ..Can’t ...Fuckin’...Breath...” the victim wheezed as the other put him into a chokehold.

“Alright Horror, tell me where my fucking thin mints went and I’ll put you the fuck down,” the other ordered, seeming surprisingly calm for the anger he was clearly feeling.

“I don’t...Have your fuckin’...Thin mints...”

“Dust,” Nightmare began harshly, glaring at him with disapproval.

“What?! The fucker’s clearly stolen them!”

“I...Haven’t...!”

“Dust, put him down.”

“Fine...” Dust obliged begrudgingly, kicking Horror in the shin. “But I know he-”

“It was me. I took your thin mints,” the King admitted. “I was hungry, and you didn’t label them. Appologise to Horror.”

“...You like thin mints?”

“Dust.”

“Fine, fine. ‘M sorry that I assumed you took my thin mints based around prior experience.”

“Yeah yeah, just don’t do that again,” Horror wheezed, still recovering. Killer took his picture with a sadistic grin, causing the damaged skeleton to flip the bird. Killer just cackled and took more.

“Now, if you children are done, can you all leave now? I’m trying to see if Error’s deserted us or not,” Nightmare ordered, pointing to the door. “That includes you Killer, you’ve irritated me enough.”

“Aw, you know you love me asshole.”

“Out.”

The skeletons  obliged; Horror admittedly slower after being winded. Nightmare just sighed and resumed viewing  AUs.

When, finally, he saw what he was looking for.

But he wasn’t expecting the Glitch to be with...With  _ him _ .

That swapped variant? Sure. The bastard squid? More than likely, though they wouldn’t be standing around  _ chatting _ .

But...Dream?

It made his marrow  _ boil _ with rage.

But he decided to listen in to figure out what the fuck the Destroyer thought he was doing.

“...S- sOo th-tH-eEen ,  wh -w- whHatTt woul-WouLdD ha- ApPenN ifFf I meT-Tt hi-iMm?”

“Oh, we don’t know. You were good with Sci, and he’s technically you too. So, probably nothing bad!”

“...S-So- omeEoN - OneE is-Ss  wA -a- aAtch - tCHinGg uS-Ss,” the glitch said suddenly, glancing around. Dream stood upright, alert. Nightmare hissed. Of course those voices of his would help them!

“T-That aura...” Dream mumbled, frowning and surprising Error at the drop of his ever-present smile. His eyes locked with Nightmares through his little window. He hissed in response, though his expression turned melancholic.

“Nightmare...”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 67/404


	6. 6 - Help Him

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A ship, I guess? An averted crisis. Blatant fourth-wall breakage. And Death getting fucking pummeled???
> 
> ...I really need to work on writing these summaries better.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> double update time!  
> i must confess, these should have been up last week. the thought to actually publish them slipped my mind though. that's not really a good excuse, but i'm really sorry!!

It had been a month since Geno had seen Death.

It would have been a month filled with tears, if it hadn’t been for some guy named Dream barging in with some guy named Error every so often.

Truth be told, he enjoyed their company.

It just wasn’t  _ his _ company.

However, he soon grew close to Error, as awkward as the two were together. Dream just smiled and said that meant they could be awkward together, so he guessed that’s what they were doing.

Until one day they both came in with scratches and bruises, much like their first meeting.

“Jesus on a stick, what happened?!” Geno asked, concerned as he saw the state they were in.

“Nightmare again,” Dream sighed, grinning at him.

“Oh. Ugh, I  _ hate _ the sound of that guy. You said he claims to know Error, right?”

“B- BbU - UttT I  dO-On’Tt knO-OwW hi-Hi- hiImMmm ,” Error affirmed, hissing as he touched a wound.

“Well, he doesn’t exactly know Error either. He just used to know someone like him,” Dream explained, hovering a hand over Error’s arm to heal some cracks.

The talk soon devolved into nonsense such as what was going on outside the Save Screen, such as the investigation on how Error got here and new AUs being formed (some guy named Ink gave them all the “ deetz ” on that, according to Dream). 

Then came the news he knew he was going to get.

“So. ..Reaper’s still missing.”

“Yeah...”

“...But! We have an idea of where he could be!” Dream chirped, making Geno look up from watching Error finger-knit, shocked.

“W-Where?!”

“Some old AU a Creator abandoned a while ago that hasn’t gotten  pruged because of how popular it is.  Underlust , I think Ink said?”

“ EuUr-rgH , do- on’Tt mE-eNtio-TionN thA -at pl- pLaceE ," Error groaned, glitching heavily. ”t- TheE vOi - oIce - ceS -s-s- SssS wa-wAntT mE t-t-TO- tO gO thE -E- erE ,  iT -t  soUnD -d-d- dS tE-erRibLEe."

“How so?” Geno asked, curious. His timeline had been closed off to others, so he’d genuinely no idea of most places.

“Ah, uh, there’s only one word to describe that place,” Dream chuckled sheepishly.

“Oh?”

“S-Se-Ex-x,” Error grimaced, making Geno flush.

“O-Oh...”

“Yeah...It isn’t great there...But the Sans there is pretty nice to talk to, and always scares off anyone who tries to...Well, court you I guess?”

“He sounds nice...” Geno murmured, thinking hard. “...What if Reaper’s there to see him instead of me...?”

“Oh! Oh goodness no! Reaper’s a heavily dedicated Soul! If he falls in love, he falls  _ hard _ . No argument could ever sway him! He’s probably gone to Lavender for advice!”

“L-Lavender?”

“Th- tHee Sa- SaAns - sS tH-TherEe ,” Error clarified, holding his creation up proudly. It was a doll of himself that he’d been working on for a while, and was just missing a face now.

“Oh, Error! That looks great!” Dream praised, making the Glitch blush with flattery.

“s-Sur-ReE...”

“Could you make one of me?” Geno asked nervously. “Oh, no! Make one of Reaper! It would...Make me feel better...”

“I-I  haAv-aVven’Tt mE-EtT hImM-”

“Oh! I have a few selfies with him! I'll send them to you now!” Dream smiled, making Error puff up.

“f-FinE...Th-tHhaAnkSs...”

“...Do you like each other?” Geno asked, making both skeletons freeze up and blush. Some static noises even came from Error, much to his amusement. “Like, the way you both act around each other is too PDA and sickly for you to  _ not _ .”

“W-Well, Error and I are friends...”

“Sureee-”

“Geno!” Dream  whined; face as yellow as a banana. 

“Well, Error’s not denying it.”

“E-Error crashed!”

“Oh. Oops.”

* * *

“Hi there!” Ink greeted as he arrived in a new AU, hyped up on yellow paint. “The name’s Ink! Welcome to the Multiverse, XTale!”

The much taller skeleton before him stared at him blankly.

“...We’ve existed for a while, you know-”

“Oh! Yeah, I know. A lot of stuff is going on outside, so I haven’t had a chance to visit yet! How are you finding existence?”

“Terrible,” chimed a white-haired human from the other side of the room, ignoring the glare the skeleton gave him.

“Oh, you must be a Chara!” Ink laughed, smudging his ink stain as he wiped away his tears of laughter. Fake, of course. “Well, what seems to be the problem?”

“Nothing’s wrong,” the skeleton answered before Chara could, looking uncomfortable at the Guardian’s presence.

“Well, for you maybe. But  apparently not for him, so please let him answer!”

“He’s messing with the timeline and dragging us into it!”

“I’m doing no such-"

“Oh.  _ Oh _ ! You’re  _ that _ timeline!” Ink recalled, quickly fumbling for his red paint. He took a quick swig and his entire demeanour suddenly changed as he glared at the skeleton.

“Gaster, right?” he asked, gritting his teeth.

“I- Y-Yes?”

“I was wondering when  _ you _ would show up. I’ve seen countless examples of this timeline in other Multiverses, and it never turns out well unless  _ I _ intervene, so listen closely.”

He quickly sprung up and grabbed Gaster by the collar, pulling him down as he landed back on the floor.

“I want  _ nothing _ to do with your games. I know how they damage the timelines, and  _ will not _ endorse them whatsoever. In fact, I suggest you shut down this whole operation down  _ immediately _ , otherwise I  _ will _ get the rest of my team involved. And, if that happens, you  _ will _ be punished. Do I make myself clear?”

The taller of the two just frowned, nodding as he slight shook in fear. The human, meanwhile, just sat there, mouth open wide with awe.

Ink let him go, quickly reaching for some yellow paint, only to find it was empty. He cursed.

“I have to go, just- Just remember the shit I said, ok?”

And with that, he left the same way he came; through a puddle of spilled ink on the floor.

Chara grinned giddily as he stood up to leave.

“...I  _ like _ that guy.”

* * *

Blue liked Underlust.

The parts Lavender took him to, anyway.

It was fun, the people here were fun, and they actually took him seriously, unlike literally everyone else in the Multiverse (Papyruses were a stark exception; apart from Edge, of course, unless they were cooking together).

And, right now? He needed that.

He sipped on his drink (apple juice, of course; he wouldn’t drink during daylight hours) as he and Lav chatted, catching up on seemingly meaningless stuff that still meant a lot to them both. You know, like cooking, how their humans were doing, and what the fuck trigonometry was anyway (a drunk bear nearby said it was a tree, so that was good enough for them).

the chatter slowly devolved into a comfortable silence as the two soon got on their phones; Blue had received a text from Ink about how he forgot to refill his vials, and Dream soon sent a text panicking over Error crashing for some reason and needed advice.

Lavender meanwhile, had gotten a message from Horror.

The two hadn’t actually met in person yet, but had known of one another for a long time. Lav had found him through Sci’s profile (the nerd was very much neutral on  Multiversal matters, and reflected it on who he followed online - he was following Dream  _ and _ Nightmare, just to clarify how neutral he was, though the latter didn’t use his account much anyway) and, out of curiosity, attempted to follow his private account.

And, miraculously, his request was accepted, followed back immediately after.

They just conversed through comments at first, but soon started sharing posts with each other and having casual conversations.

And that’s what they were doing now, though Lavender attempted to hide his screen from the skeleton beside him. He wasn’t prepared for an impromptu  interrogation from the other.

Unfortunately, that’s exactly what he got.

“ Whatcha doiiiin’?” Blue asked, peering over the others shoulder. “Oh, hey, is that Horror?-”

“ _ It’s a fan account that wanted to talk to me can we stop talking now?  _ _ Haha _ _ thanks _ -” Lav panicked, making everyone nearby wonder how the  _ fuck _ he managed to talk completely in italics. Blue blinked a few times and then frowned.

“Uh...Lav?-”

“It’s fine! It’s cool! Like I said, just a fan account!-”

“Horror doesn’t have any fan accounts..?”

Silence filled the air between the two, the sounds of the bar breaking it with the murmurs of the patrons’ conversation.

“...Lav, I want a divorce-”

“We’re not even together Blue, what-”

* * *

Reaper was convinced he couldn’t die.

For a start, he was Death itself; one of two Deaths, anyway. And, second of all, his HP was too high for him to care for any attack.

So, why then was he lying on the ground with only 5HP left to his name?

Because he’d found  _ him _ .

His  _ real _ Geno.

Except, he didn’t come running to him for a hug this time.

No.

He fucking  _ flipped out _ .

It was  him; he knew it. It just had to be him.

But he could sense that...that  _ fucking Destroyer _ too.

And maybe, just maybe, that’s why he was laying there right now.

He gasped for breath as a bone was sent through his rib cage, only barely missing his Soul. 4HP left now. He hissed in pain, squinting up at the figure standing above him.

“Ge...no...”

The figure gave a wild grin, snow flurrying all around them.

“ **_ [No- _ ** **_ OtT _ ** **__ ** **_ anyY _ ** **_ - _ ** **_ YmO _ ** **_ -O- _ ** **_ oreE _ ** **_ ] _ ** No- OtT anyY - YmO -O- oreE _ {No- _ _ OtT _ __ _ anyY _ _ - _ _ YmO _ _ -O- _ _ oreE _ _ } _ ,” he cackled, summoning one last bone and grabbing it, raising it high in the air, preparing to strike.

Except, the strike never came.

The glitch was pushed off of the God, hard, knocking him out. Reaper could barely hear or see his saviour, but was  greatful nonetheless. He felt himself being lifted up and carried; he figured this was no ordinary monster if they could touch him.

Then it hit him.

“Ink...?” he rasped out, glaring at the figure carrying him. Come to think of it, they really were wearing a lot of bright  colors like green, yellow, purple; exactly what Ink would wear off duty. He heard a chuckle, but couldn’t make out the words that were said. So, instead of fighting, he just begrudgingly let himself drift off to sleep, being awkwardly carried off by the other.

Except, Ink was still angrily waiting for his yellow paint to arrive in the doodle sphere.

If only Reaper had noticed the shades adorning his rescuer’s face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [95/404]


	7. 7 - In Which Skye Can't Fucking Write Fresh

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Soulmate in a cafe that doesn't want him.  
> And a parasite saviour.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: The title isn't a lie. This chapter was good until Fresh appeared.
> 
> Oh yeah, whilst I'm here, stream Dynamite (;3c), and go check out this fake screenshot I drew for this chapter!:  
> https://youtube.com/watch?v=gTf98YXc4x8

Ccino sighed, shutting out the rambling of Jack. He was going on about his latest “conquest” again, and he honestly couldn’t care for it. Why would he want to know about his co-owner's sex life more than he already did, anyway? Sasha this, Sasha that. Everything was all about this “Sasha” character. He wouldn’t be somewhat surprised, however, if it wasn’t the 5 th week in a row that the greyhound monster had been obsessing over her.

“You sound like you love her with the way you’re talking, Jackie-boy,” he mused, filling up a mug with some coffee, reaching to get some coconut milk from the fridge.

“Yeah, well, it probably doesn’t mean anything...”

“Seriously? You can never keep a lover this long. You should keep pursuing her. In fact, I’d be asking her to be my girlfriend if I were you.”

“No you wouldn’t, you’re terrified of women that aren’t alternates of  Toriels ,  Undynes and  Alphyses .”

“You know what I mean,” he sighed, pointing a spoon at the other. “Just- Just man up and tell her you wanna spend more time with her. Who knows? This could be the real deal. Don’t throw it away.”

“Yeah, whatever. I’ll think about it. You done with that one, Cappuccino-Man?”

“Mhmm, here,” he nodded, handing it over to the other. Jack gave him the thumbs up and walked away with the mug, completely ignoring the cat that had wandered into the kitchen.  Ccino just chuckled, placing his hands on his hips.

“Silly kitty, you shouldn’t be in here!” he scolded jokingly, getting a high-pitched meow in response. “Aww, I know lil’ Judy, but rules are rules. Out you go, kitty cat!”

The fluffy ginger tabby just stared up at him, meowing again.  Ccino sighed, bending down to scoop her up in his arms.

“Cmon Judy, out here!” he said, walking out of the kitchen and placing her down. She immediately ran back in, much to his annoyance,

But, this time, a few cats went in with her.

“Amy?  Ashie ?” he called out, frowning as the fluffy white cat and short-haired black cat follow the other in. He looked up, noticing a few other cats eyeing the kitchen door too.

“...Jack? Are the cats ok?” he asked, looking over at him. The other just shrugged, writing a customer’s order.

“They’re probably just hungry.”

“Their bowls are all full...?”

“Whatever, just go see what’s up .”

“By god! I never thought of that!-“

“ Ccino .”

“Yeah yeah, on it .”

He looked in the direction the cats were heading from,  staring blankly at the customer before him.  It was a skeleton, slightly smaller than himself. They were dressed in monochrome and looked just about ready for Winter to come. Their  eyes were narrowed, gazing down at the single cat that wasn’t startled by him.

And then, their eyes met.

And  Ccino _ felt _ it.

Looking away with a frown, he turned to Jack, who was now shooing the cats out of the kitchen himself.

“Jack..?”

“What now?”

“ I found the source of their , uh, let’s say fear.”

“Get rid of it then-“

“They’re one of them,” he  frowned, causing the dog monster to pause and look down at him.

“…Fuck’s sake, now?!”

“I-I don’t know what to tell you! I wasn’t expecting to meet any of them at all!”

“Well- Well you’ve gotta do  _ something _ ! These  furballs aren’t supposed to be in there during opening hours!”

“Yeah, ok, I ’m…on it then.”

He adjusted his apron and, cautiously, made his way over with his best customer-service smile.

“H-Hello, sir, have you-“

“Sit.”

“U-Uh-“

“Please. Sit,” the stranger continued, voice deep .  Ccino hesitated, but complied anyway, sitting awkwardly opposite the other. The two were silent for a few minutes,  just…staring at each other.

“U-Uh… So…Did you feel-“

“Yes.”

“O-Oh! Uh… Have you been…Looking for me?”

The stranger pulled down their hood ,  leaning forward on the table. They were frowning.

“ Your name is  Ccino , right?”

“Uh…You just got that from my name tag.”

“It’s a yes or no question, ” they replied, eyebrows furrowed.

“Well, yeah, I’m  Ccino ,  Ccino is…Me…”

“Good, good, I’m heading in the right direction then. Now, I want you to listen very closely to what I’m about to tell you…” they trailed off,  staring at him icily. “ “ I don’t  _ care _ who  _ you _ are to me,  Ccino ,  I’m just not here for you. Well, you’re not my end goal, anyhow.”

Ccino stared emptily , zoning out. The only Soulmate he’d met out of the two he had wasn’t there for  _ him _ .  Figures. He was destined to be alone forever with cats  mewling for food incessantly .

The stranger snapped their fingers in front of his face , snapping him out of his trance.

“Hey. Stop it. You’re crying.”

Ccino sniffed, reaching  up to wipe the tears leaking from his sockets.

“S-So I am…”

“Look, don’t take it personally. If it’s any consolation, I’m not after our  other Soulmate in the end either. I’m after his brother.”

“You- You know who it is?”

The stranger gave a smirk, eyes narrowing.

“Oh yeah, I’m sure you’d love to know. Ever heard of a  Monster named  _ Nightmare _ ?”

Silence filled the air between them once more .

“You’re…”

“I’m not joking.”

“…Does he even have a…?”

“Apparently…Anyway, now I’ve met you, it should be easier to pin down his location. If I manage to sneak into his little Mafia thing then I may just run into his brother – you know who Dream is, right? – and, eventually, end up with him in some way. I’ve admired him for a long time, so I’d like to get close to him in some way. Now then,” they stood up, pulling their hood back up. “I should get going. Maybe we’ll meet again, or maybe not. It would be better if we didn’t, anyway.”

“W-Wait!”  Ccino called out as they went to leave, making them pause.

“...What?”

“...Can I at least know your name?”

The stranger stared blankly for a few moments, then broke out into a lopsided grin.

“Cross. ‘M Cross. Soldier of the Royal Guard in  XTale .”

Ccino nodded, softly waving him goodbye.

“Good luck with finding him, I guess...” he mumbled as he watched his Soulmate walk out the door, softly smiling.

It was just as Cross said, anyway;

Now they’d found each other, he’d have no problem finding Nightmare.

And  Ccino was sure they’d meet again very,  _ very _ soon.

* * *

Error wasn’t fond of bright, jarring  colors . He preferred more muted, dark tones, and talking to Geno about it only confirmed his suspicions that he always had.

So, to see a skeleton in a cloak being carried by someone dressed in those same  colors he despised so much was a little...unnerving.

“ Wassup , my radical  brotato chip Glitchy?!” the fashion criminal yelled, making Error flinch.

“...Dre-DRea- EamM !!” he yelled out, calling for the Positive Guardian out of fear. He rolled off of the couch, crawling backwards away from the skeleton that towered over him. The shades he wore changed from saying “YO-LO” to “OH-NO” in their bright, neon colors.

“Woah! Woah!  Ya gotta calm down there  homeslice ! I  ain’t gonna hurt’chu!-”

Dream came crashing down the stairs with a warrior cry, bow drawn and pointed at the Monster before him, only to lower it with a larger smile than normal.

“O-Oh! Fresh! It’s a pleasure to see you again! You’ve been off-the-grid for quite a-” he paused, looking at the figure in his arms. “-long. ..Time ...Is. ..Is that...Reaper...?”

“Oh! Yep! Sure is! Found ‘ im bein’ attacked by some no-good whacko in Flowerfell!”

“O-Oh! Oh goodness! Quick, put him on the couch!”

‘Fresh’ did as he was told with a nod, a permanent grin gracing his features. Error got up cautiously. He wasn’t sure of this new person, but who could blame him after the startling first-impressions he’d gotten from everyone he’d met thus far?

He strode to Dream’s side, carefully crouching down to marvel at the God before him.

“...I-I-I  reC-CogniIsEe hI-immM ,” he noted, poking his cheek with a frown. “The- EreE wAAsS sOmEoNeeE liKe -E hi-ImM...”

“...Back in your Multiverse, right?” Dream finished, making the glitch nod. Fresh looked over in surprise.

“Wait,  hol ’ up,  ya ain’t from ‘ere dawg?”

“n-No-Oo.”

“...Welp, that explains the Glitchy-Boy code in the rando who attacked dear-ol' Death ‘ere,” he shrugged, making Dream pause and whip his head around to him, startled.

“Error’s code was in...?!”

“Yep- adoodle ! I thought it was some Creator prank – which totally  ain’t fresh  yo! \- but now I see my  homie right here...An’ he’s from  anotha Multiversal Timeline...”

Silence filled the air, creating a suffocating atmosphere.

“Y-You don’t mean-”

“I do,  lil ’ buddy,” Fresh nodded, patting the smaller skeleton on the head. He lowered his shades, putting a purple haze and horrifying creature coming from his eye-socket into view that Error would have burned into his memory forevermore.

“ Ol ’ Error’s diddly-darn messed things up.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm so sorry you had to read that
> 
> [96/404]


	8. 8 - Changing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything's changing. And so quickly, too...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> another chapter down! i realised last night just how long this project is gonna be now i've set out my plan, and now i'm kinda dying inside ;;;why do i do this to myself ;;;  
> on a happier note (shocking given the things happening today, i know), the next chapter is practically finished, so i'll be uploading whenever i can later today! i'm just uploading this one now before doing some school work before i forget!! :Dc

Geno took in a deep breath to steady himself, piece of butterscotch-cinnamon pie in hand as he stared through the portal before him. He carefully brought it to his mouth, shaking slightly, and took a few bites until the spicy-sweetness filled his senses. He instantly felt...well, not in pain, as his wound stretching across his chest faded into nothing more than a stain and harsh memory. A small, sad smile fluttered across his features for the first time in several months.

1HP.

_ Finally _ .

He could leave.

* * *

Soft snores echoed throughout the dark lab, the source being covered by papers as he laid his head on his desk, drooling slightly in his sleep. His eyes fluttered open slowly at the sound of someone entering and flipping the light switch, and he sat up, the sheets falling away as he stretched and tiredly looked around for the trespasser. He squinted at the figure as the lights flickered on, reaching for his silver glasses. He blinked a few times in adjustment, rubbing away the drool from his mouth absent-mindedly.

“Oh? What’re  _ you _ doin ’ here..?” he mumbled, yawning reluctantly.

“I need some assistance. I was hoping you could help, given you’re helping my target.”

“No hello?” the tired scientist joked, getting up from his seat and stretching once more. His joints clicked and he groaned. “Ugh, I need to stop sleeping here. But, really, I don’t know who you’re  talkin ’ about, so just give me a moment to wake up.”

He clumsily stumbled across the room to a counter-top, ignoring the empty coffee cups already lingering on the surface and grabbing a clean one off of a rack. He set the electronic kettle to boil, reaching for the coffee beans, tipping much more than should have been healthy.

“...You did it, didn’t you?”

“I had to, didn’t I? Things weren’t working...” he trailed off, tracing the patterns on his mug tiredly. “I mean, even  _ you _ suggested I end things with him.”

“Do you know how he’s taking it?”

“Probably not as well as he initially let on,” the skeleton shrugged, adjusting his glasses and lifting the kettle to pour into his coffee. He paused, frowning. “...Fuck, milk.”

“Idiot...” the other hissed, slowly stalking around the lab. He finally decided on a place to perch – the scientist’s workbench of all places – and flopped onto it carelessly.

“There’s some strong acids there, I wouldn’t sprawl out if I were you,” he sighed, just sipping on the burnt, black coffee.

“Whatever, just...Ugh, help me.”

“Yeah  yeah , hang on,” he chuckled, more awake now he had pure caffeine in his system. He pulled up a random chair, both flinching as it scraped against the dusty old tiled floor.

“Don’t do that again.”

“Sorry. But what’s up?”

“Well, two things really. Do you want to start with the formalities or the life lessons today?”

“ Mmm , formalities please,” he hummed, grimacing at the next sip he took. “Ew, how did Red ever like this shit?”

“It’s alright when you get used to it,” the other sighed, sitting up. “...So, Error-”

“ Ughh ,  never mind , no formalities if you  wanna talk about him,” he groaned. “It’s  _ way _ too early to go through the science behind that again, and I’m still suffering heartbreak dammit!”

“Ok, then shut up and listen to me,” the taller growled.

Silence filled the air until, slowly, the scientist’s visitor changed, making a horrible, squelching noise.

“...Nightmare...You-”

“If you’re  gonna ask me how, then I’m fucked because that’s what I was going to ask you,” he sighed, now about a foot smaller and much more like his twin in appearance. “I just- I just woke up like this with no rhyme or reason. Thankfully I found out I can shift between both forms but-”

“-You’re so  _ cute _ !” the scientist yelled out, pale blue blush dusting across his face. Nightmare froze up, blushing bright purple.

“W-WHAT?! SHUT UP, I CAN STILL CRUSH YOUR MISERABLE LITTLE SKULL!” he yelled back, making the other cackle.

“I’M SORRY, I’M SORRY, YOU’RE JUST SO FUCKING ADORABLE AND SO MUCH SMALLER AND-” he let out a wheeze, starting to choke on air.

“T-That’s what you get for laughing you fucker! Sci, you’ve  gotta take this seriously, I don’t know what’s happened and-”

Sci reached up and grabbed his cheeks, squishing them. Nightmare sighed, closing his eyes as goop suddenly covered him once more. The scientist yelped as he was dragged up with it as the King increased in size once more. His eye snapped back  open; a maniacal smile played on his mouth.

“ _ Run _ .”

* * *

“Ugh, bored,” Ink groaned, flopping down onto the couch before him. Dream momentarily frowned.

“We’re in the middle of solving something...And you’re bored?”

“You know how easily distracted and bored I get Dreamy!” he protested, looking up at him and pouting. Error looked down at him, puffing his cheek out.

“Y-You- ou're -re insu-suff-sufferable-ble.”

“I try. When’s Reaper gonna wake up?”

“Hopefully soon, I’ve managed to heal most of his injuries,” Blue called out, walking in with a plate of tacos. “For now, though, take these; Fresh helped me make them and they smell pretty good!”

“T-Ta-acos-s?” Error perked up, not caring for the other two’s disgruntled looks.

“Blue, you know Fresh can’t coo-”

“Inky, don’t be mean,” Dream quickly scolded, taking one from the plate. It was covered in paprika. “...The amount of spice on this  _ does _ seem excessive though, Berry.”

“Oh! That one’s for Error!” he grinned, taking it back and handing it to the glitch. “You prefer spicy stuff, right?”

“I g-g- gues -ss?” he shrugged, biting into it. Everyone paused, anticipating his reaction.

“...Do you like it?” Blue asked, bouncing up and down excitedly. Silence.

“Uhh, Error? Earth to glitchy!” Ink sat up, waving his hand over his face. Error swallowed his bite, opening his eyes to reveal little stars in the place of his normal eye-lights.

“Th-Tha- at's -s the be-e- est fu-fuck- ckin -ng  shi -it I’ve  ev -ever-er eaten-en-n,” he said finally, nodding with approval. Blue chuckled, grabbing another off of the plate.

“Here! This one has a lot of spice on it too!”

Soon the four of them were chattering about random nonsense, chowing down on the tacos Blue and Fresh had prepared (you could easily tell what ones Fresh had made, but Blue’s improved cooking skills made them better nonetheless). Error had been wedged in between Blue and Dream as he had somehow managed to cope with Ink scooting over and flopping over onto his lap.

It was...Nice. He wasn’t normally comfortable with the others getting too close, but this was relaxing. Peaceful, even. Even the voices in his head quieted down to enjoy the company.

Until, suddenly...

“Holy shit, they’re  hecking seducing Error?!” a voice yelled out, causing a bunch of others to start arguing. Error groaned, causing the smaller skeletons around him to look at him in surprise.

“ Wh -When-n will  th -they- ey sh - shu -u-u- ut up-p-p?” he sighed, staring up at the ceiling. He felt heat rushing to his cheekbones in a blush, and he shut his eyes in frustration. Ink sat up in his lap, twisting himself to face him with a lopsided grin.

“What are they saying now?” he asked, curious on how they even worked.

“T-That y-y-y-you're al-all...”

“That we’re what?” Blue asked, eyes wide in confusion. Dream sighed.

“Guys, leave him alone-”

“That you’re all seducing me...” Error finally mumbled, not glitching whatsoever.

“Hey, don’t tell on me!” the voice from before called out angrily as the others halted in their chatter.

Ink suddenly burst out in laughter, rolling off of the other’s lap and onto the floor. Blue snickered as he yelped in pain suddenly.

“S-Seduce you?!” Dream yelled out, face becoming a bright yellow. “N-N-No! I could never- I-I mean, they might-”

“Hey!”

“T-That’s the thing!” Ink wheezed out, choking on air as he cackled. “I  _ can’t love _ ! Why would I-” he coughed, unable to control his laughter.

“A-And I think of Error as nothing more than a good friend!” Blue chimed in, patting said skeleton on the head. “Honestly, if anyone here  _ wanted  _ to seduce Error it’d be you Dream!”

“N-NO WAY-”

“What the fuck is going on,” a deep voice snarled, causing everyone to look up.

It was Reaper.

“R-Reaper! You’re awake!” Dream stood up, clasping his hands. “S-So sorry about this, uh-”

“Why the  _ fuck _ am I here?!”

Ink coughed a few times, only just coming down from his laughing-high. Blue shuffled nervously.

And then his eyes met Error’s.

And they narrowed angrily.

“ _ Destroyer,”  _ he hissed, rolling up his sleeves (to no avail, mind you) and summoning his scythe. Error felt tears pricking at the corners of his eye sockets, yet he couldn’t think of why.

“R-Reaper! Please, we can all explain!-”

“ _ WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH MY GENO?!” _ he roared, charging at him and holding his scythe above him, ready to strike.

“REAPER, PLEASE!-”

“P-Please d-d-don't hurt me-e-e" Error mumbled, bringing his knees to his chest as he gazed at the other. The Death God paused, lowering his scythe in shock.

“You...You sound like...”

Dream hovered a hand over his shoulder.

“Reaper...He  _ is _ Geno...Just not ours.”

Fresh crashed through a portal, dragging a glitching, screaming mess with him. Everyone stared at him.

“...What did I miss brahs?” he asked, confused at everyone’s disappointed faces, though he broke out into a smile as he saw Reaper. “Oh! Reaper, dawg! Perfect timin’!”

“...Is that?” Blue asked, shocked at the screaming, glitching mess the parasite was holding onto.

“...No...” Reaper whispered hoarsely. “No. ..He \- He can’t be- He attacked...”

Reaper fell to his knees, staring at the newcomer. Fresh grinned a little unsettlingly, lowering his shades once more.

“Yep!  Heeeere’s ya Geno!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> heads up; the next chapter is MUCH longer than this one. this is really just a stepping stone between the last one and the next :3  
> [97/404]


	9. 9 - Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Love's in the air, can you smell it? <3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm a big fat liar i'm sorry for not getting this out sooner ;;;
> 
> also, bad news time;  
> i'm quaranting for 2 weeks because my friend in my science class caught covid, and my mam says i've got a fever... :')  
> i'm sure it can't be too bad, but let's not jinx it ;;;
> 
> aaaanyway, hope you enjoy, internet! it's a long one :Dc  
> (now if you'll excuse me i'll be beating Hugh's ass in pokemon black version 2 and swooning over adorable people)

“Are you sure about this, Cappuccino-Man?” Jack asked, folding his arms in concern. Ccino smiled up at him, adjusting the straps on his shoulders.

“Of course I am! You don’t need to be so worried about me!”

“I-I’m not- Ugh, whatever. Have you got everything?”

“Yep, I double-triple-checked before putting on my coat!” he answered.

“...You get yourself hurt and I’ll kill you,” the dog monster sighed, looking away.

“Honestly, Jack, you need to focus more on how the heck you’re gonna cope with the cats on your own for over a week or two.”

“Oh, I won’t be alone,” he grinned, tail wagging. “Sasha’s coming to help. And don’t worry about her taking your room, she’ll be-”

“She’ll be sleeping with you? I figured. On that note, though? You do the deed in my room and you’re dead to me.”

“Yeah yeah, just- Just go then. I promise everything’ll be a-ok when you get back. Just don’t fucking dust yourself.”

“Of course,” Ccino chuckled, opening the back entrance of the cat café. A bluish-gray cat ran in as he did so. “Oh! That’s where you went Norm! Jack, make sure he doesn’t get lost again!”

“Of course, just go, quick, before I make you stay.”

Ccino grinned and waved as he walked out, turning around and jogging away.

He walked for a few hours, passing many different people; monsters and humans alike. The coffee shop was quite far away from the centre of the Omega Timeline, so it would be a while until he got there.

He stopped about half-way there, getting out his wallet when he noticed a hot dog stand. It was busy, but he pushed through the crowds to get there. He stared up in surprise when he saw who was running it, though.

“Huh? G?! What are you doing here, selling hot dogs of all things?” he asked, watching as the other looked down with a grin.

“No hello? That’s cold, Ccino,” he chuckled, flicking away the cigarette in his hands. “I just need some extra cash though, to answer your question. Now, riddle me this; what’s a little, harmless skeleton doin’ all the way in the centre of the OT?”

“Oh! I met one of my Soulmates!”

“Sweet-”

“He wasn’t interested in me though.”

“Ah, bummer.”

“But! Now I’ve met him I can find the other much more easily! So that’s what I’m doing!” he grinned up at him.

“Nice. Good for you, buddy! What would ya like, by the way?”

“Oh, uh...A hot dog, right? Without the onion though, please.”

“Sure, on the house for my lil’ buddy,” G chuckled, starting to prepare the treat for him.

“O-Oh no! I couldn’t possibly-”

“Well, I can. Consider it a congrats present. Condiments?”

“K-Ketchup I guess...” Ccino flushed, slightly embarrassed now. “U-Uh, I need to give you something, right?”

“How about you get some fries then? I’ll let you pay for those.”

“Oh, please then! And add the ketchup too please!”

After a few more minutes of chatter and food preparation, Ccino was leaving with a thank you and wave. G waved back, attending to the next customer.

He munched on his food as he travelled onward, occasionally receiving greetings from customers of the café. He looked around, bright eyed, as he approached the centre. It was getting dark now, and the night-life was starting to awaken and bustle twice as much as the waking world. Neon lights dulled out the star light in the night sky. He passed several hen parties as he went on. Or, maybe it was one big hen party that had separated? He wasn’t sure, but he knew that the amount of people around had increased ten-fold.

Thankfully, though, he soon reached his destination.

The AU Hall.

He climbed up the steps, noting it wasn’t very busy inside. He strode in, pulling at the straps on his backpack and looking around.

Getting to Nightmare surely wouldn’t be an easy task. He knew of the general direction to head in to get to him, though. He just had to get to  Underswap or  Underfell , though preferably the latter. If  Underswap was the only option, he’d have to use a very...Well, long-winded way to get into  Dreamtale , which could take literal weeks. He wasn’t sure if he brought enough money for hotels to do that;  Underswap was rather expensive to stay in if you were an outsider, due to it being such a popular AU. And, whilst  Underfell was popular too, it wasn’t as…Well,  _ desirable _ , for many  monsters to stay in. visitors to drive up the hotel fees.

Not only that, but portals were completely unregulated within the AU, and the very man he was looking for hung around there regularly to feed off of everyone’s negative energy.

He waddled up to the portal to  Underfell , noticing the lack of a queue and the larger amount of security people around. Said guards stopped him as he approached, the human of the quartet looking at him in confusion.

“What’s a Sans like you doing heading to  Underfell ?” a fox monster questioned, her voice as icy as her stare. “You look as though you wouldn’t last a day there.”

“O-Oh, I’m visiting a friend!” Ccino quickly answered, not feeling happy about lying. “Y-You know...Uh...Brody?”

“What the heck is a Brody?” the human asked, making the white dog monster laugh.

“Oh, guys, let him through. He means no harm,” she chuckled, ice blue eyes twinkling with happiness. “He’s my boyfriend’s co-worker.”

“O-Oh, Sasha! It’s great to see you!” Ccino quickly chimed, feeling embarrassed at the fact he hadn’t noticed her right away.

“I didn’t know you got a boyfriend...”

“Shut up  Tawna , you know I’ve been  lookin ’ for someone like Jack ever since Cress passed,” she chastised, slapping the fox monster up the side of her head.

“W-Why you little!-”

“Guys, please,” the quieter of them sighed. A large crow monster. Most likely the last of his AU, if it was still out there. Bird monsters as large as him were becoming an uncommon sight all throughout the  Hyperverse . “Just let him through, stop fighting. Jas, stamp him.”

“Yes sir!” the human saluted, brushing their dyed violet hair out their face before reaching over to grab the stamp, dipping it into the bright green ink roller. “A safety precaution; Fell monsters are scared of attacking OT visitors because they know the punishments are more severe. Hand, please!”

“Yeah, you gonna be ok Ccino?” Sasha asked, struggling  againts Tawna , who had her in a headlock” I know you’re meeting a friend-” she subtly winked (Jack must have told her) “-but it can be dangerous out there. Do you need someone to guard you as you get to a hotel? I’m free now, if you like- Agh,  Tawna stop! I submit, I submit!”

“I-If you like,” Ccino smiled nervously. “I think I’ll be ok though. I’m not entirely defenceless, you know.”

“If you’re sure- Ow,  Tawna -”

“ Tawna no, stop!” Jas cried out, dragging the fox monster away. “Bad foxy!”

“Don’t call me that!-”

“Hey kid,” the crow monster murmured, grabbing Ccino’s attention. He gave him a crooked smile. “I’d leave now, if I were you.”

Ccino nodded quickly, whispering a goodbye to Sasha and exchanging small smiles.

And, with a deep breath, he stepped through, into the gateways between peace and chaos, and into a new world.

* * *

“You wish to join us,” Killer stated, cocking an eyebrow at the newcomer. Cross nodded firmly; his eyebrows furrowed.

“I believe I have acquired the right sort of skill set over the years to fill in this position, due to my position in my AU’s guild of guards. Not only that, but I’ve had to fight against a...Certain force repeatedly during the timelines I spent locked there.”

“Sure, buddy, and I’m the Queen of England,” Killer snickered. “Another words, I ain’t until proven otherwise.”

“...I’m not sure that’s how that saying goes,” Dust whispered, making Horror cackle. Killer flushed and threw a knife in both of their directions, dodging an axe and sharpened bone in return.

“Shut up, asshats, he knew what I meant!”

“Did he?”

“He did!”

“I...Did,” Cross nodded, frowning. How were  _ they _ some of the most feared monsters in the Multiverse? He just couldn’t see it.

“There you go, see!” Killer smiled triumphantly. “I’m  _ very _ concise.”

“You only know that word because of Nightmare-”

“DUST I CAN AND WILL HURT YOU-”

“Silence,” came a deep, gruff voice. Killer quickly sat down nervously, grinning at the source.

“There ya are, boss! We got a new request to-”

“No.”

“Eh?”

“No. We don’t need any more help,” Nightmare growled, cyan  eyelight staring icily at Killer. “We’ve got a good portion of the Multiverse in our hands now those Star Fucks are distracted with that traitorous glitch, so why the  _ fuck _ do we need someone like-”

He paused as his eyes met Cross’ own, staring up blankly at the King.

“-...This...” he trailed off, frowning. “...No. Leave. I can’t have any distractions, if you wanted to find me.”

“W-What-” Cross began, surprised. He hadn’t anticipated this outcome at all. “No! You misunderstand!”

“ _ Leave _ ,” Nightmare hissed, glaring at him. “I don’t care if you wish to help. I’ve seen this a thousand times before, and I will  _ not _ stand by as you weaken me!”

“I just-”

“Leave,  _ now _ !-”

“THE OTHER ONE WILL BE COMING TOO!” Cross yelled out, slamming his hands on the table before him. Everyone was silent for a few moments.

“...Should’ve brought my popcorn,” Horror mumbled, receiving a glare from everyone.

“Silence, Horror!” Nightmare growled. He turned back to the monochrome skeleton, confused. “...What do you mean by that.”

“I met him first. His name is Ccino, and he’s a barista in the Omega Timeline. I did a check of him, and believe me when I say he’s absolutely useless. His stats are miles below the average for us  Sanses . One malicious hit from a  _ toddler _ would kill him.”

“...And what do you want me to do about it. I’ll just send him away too.”

Cross chuckled, adjusting his hood.

“No, you won’t.”

“Excuse m-”

“He’s the one you need to fear when it comes to weakening you,” he retaliated, looking straight up at the King. “Because, for all his faults, he is still one of the purest Souls you’d ever meet. When I said I was looking for  _ you _ , and not  _ him _ , he  _ cried _ .”

“I make many people cry.”

“You might...” Cross sighed, looking away. He felt guilty as he recalled his encounter with the slightly taller skeleton. “...But I don’t. My job as a guardsman and defender was exactly that; to  _ defend the people _ . I’ve only ever made one-person cry, and that was my brother when I left. I felt nothing for it, but that barista...”

“...Personally, I think he ticks all the boxes,” Dust chimed in, shrugging. “And, besides, he’s the only one who’s seen this guy. He could scare him off for you whilst he’s working around here.”

Nightmare was silent, his eye closed. He sighed, looking back down. His eye-light had softened, much less harshly lit now.

“...Fine. You may stay.  _ But _ . Only on the condition you leave once he gets the message and leaves me alone.”

“Yes, sir,” Cross nodded, relieved he’d managed to salvage himself. And, most likely, Ccino too. He couldn’t imagine what pressures living here could crop up, and he wanted to make sure such a fragile monster didn’t have to endure it. And the fact that he was getting closer to Dream, too...

“You won’t regret this.”

* * *

Meanwhile, Dream himself was wedged in between an angry Death god and restless Ink. They were travelling in the OT, meaning they couldn’t exactly teleport wherever they wanted. Blue was driving up front (given the fact he was the only one out of all 5 of them who was actually competent at it), and Error was sitting next to him, fiddling with the radio experimentally.

Fresh had gone separately with the “Geno,” given the biggest car they could hire only had 5 seats. Well, 7 seats if you counted the two in the very back that folded up when needed, but they wouldn’t have fit either skeletons if they tried; Fresh was very tall, and the other was...Well, cranky, and probably wouldn’t have sat in one spot. Getting Ink to do so was hard enough, and no one here had the mental capacity to deal with them both.

“Are we nearly there? I can feel my joints going stiff,” Ink complained, resting his head against the Positivity Guardian’s shoulder. Blue sighed.

“ _ No _ , Ink, we’re not there yet. If there wasn’t so much traffic...”

“I can go outside and scare everyone off so the roads are clearer,” Reaper mused.

“No!” everyone yelled, save for Error who was too distracted to care. Ink paused, thinking.

“...Well, actually-”

“No, no scaring! That’s the exact opposite of what we do!” Dream protested, nudging Ink’s head away from him.

“This is why we can’t have nice things,” Blue grumbled, tapping at the steering wheel impatiently. “There’s always traffic here, and Ink never shuts up while we’re in a car!”

“At least it’s more spacious in the front,” Dream sighed.

“Oh, don’t  _ you _ start Dream!”

“I wasn’t, I just-”

“ G-G-Guys-ss-s ,  sh-sh-shu-ut up-p-p!” Error yelled, glaring around at everyone. Everyone stopped talking in shock. The glitch’s expression softened. “ Th-Thank-anks .”

He went back to fiddling with the radio as if nothing had happened, and everyone stayed quiet. Error finally settled on a radio station, sitting back in his seat with satisfaction. It was playing some sort of rock song. Blue hummed along, bopping his skull to the beat. Ink soon joined, feeling the urge to move at least a little again. Soon the three were singing along to the song; albeit a little off-pitch, as Blue was the only one of the three who could sing relatively well.

Dream smiled with a sigh, and Reaper gazed out of the window, watching as the car started moving a little faster now the traffic had cleared up. It was dark, and raining. He watched as raindrops raced each other down the window, smiling every so often when the one he was watching “won.”

The quintet soon quieted down again, Dream starting to drift off to sleep out of boredom. Ink got out his sketchbook to doodle, and Error just looked on ahead.

He hadn’t seen Geno in a while. How long had it been? 2 months? 2 months, all on his own.

2 months since he’d teased him and Dream.

“Oh, come on!” he had chuckled. “It’s so  _ obvious _ there’s chemistry between the two of you!”

Even the voices bugged him about it. It was only yesterday they’d all sat on the couch, after all, and it wasn’t the first time they’d questioned his feelings for the smaller skeletons. Many often just stuck with Ink (which was laughable, really) and Blue. But Dream...

He felt as though that, maybe, Geno  _ could _ have  _ possibly _ been right. He couldn’t be sure yet though, so he just left it to stew in his Soul.

Soon, they turned off of the main road onto a much quieter one, Dream’s eyes fluttering open with a groan.

“Mm...Are we there Berry?”

“Almost,” Blue whispered, flicking a switch to make the headlights more intense. There weren’t as many street lights here. “Core said  Cherrygrove Creek, right?”

“Yeah. On Oakwood Road. Number 20, with the purple roses in the front.”

“Thanks...” Blue mumbled, turning into a small village. “Well, we’re in  Cherrygrove Creek alright. I’m not so sure on where Oakwood Road could be, though...”

“They said it was by the back entrance of the village,” Reaper piped up, sitting up straight now they were close. “And that it’s in a small cul-de-sac.”

They were quiet for a while until Ink suddenly chuckled.

“What’s up?”

“Look at how beautiful you look when you’re asleep, Dreamy,” he taunted, showing an accurate sketch of Dream sleeping, drooling and all. Dream flushed.

“I-I don’t look like that when I’m asleep!” he protested, starting to laugh. Error looked back and cackled  glitchily .

“O-O-oOh g-god-d-d,  ta-take-ke a  pi-pi-pictu-ture-re-re of  tha-at and sen-end it to-o-o-o me-e-e-e-e.”

“Hell yeah! Oh, but this is going all over my social media, not just to you.”

“I-Ink,  noooo !” Dream protested, sighing defeatedly and slumping against the smaller.

“Guys, shh! We’re here!” Blue called, tired from concentrating on the road so much. Reaper sat up more, craning his head to see the house number.

The white car they borrowed rolled to a stop as they finally pulled up outside the house. Rose bushes adorned the front lawn, bordering the garden path. Some creeper plant was traipsing up the wall along a trellis too. It probably would’ve looked much more aesthetically please if it weren’t so dark. Ink instantly thought he should make some fairy lights when he got out, but decided against it. It would take too long.

The skeletons got out of the vehicle, Reaper floating up slightly so as to not kill any wildlife as he went into the house. Blue stretched, sighing as a few of his joints popped.

“You all need to get good at driving, I can’t do this every time we need to go somewhere,” he grumbled. Ink slipping his drawing equipment into his inventory, looking through the one window with light present. He saw Core and waved up at them.

“Alright, we’re here before Fresh, so we should just go in and start now. He knows the story, and it’d be better for Geno if they turned up after we’ve explained most of it,” Dream decided, starting to stretch too. Error hummed in agreement, looking up at the human in the window. They stared down at him; expression unreadable. He frowned in discomfort, looking away. Their stare made him feel uneasy.

The five of them started walking into the garden, Error holding open the gate for the others. Reaper floated in first, impatient to see Geno. As they reached the front door, however, a car honked and they turned to look.

“Guess we’ll have to hit him with it all at once,” Reaper grumbled as Fresh got out, finger gunning them all. The other skeleton got out soon after, wiping at their face grumpily. He seemed much calmer now, but still upset.

“Sup,  broskis !” Fresh called out, jogging into the garden, the other at his tail.

“Tired, unprepared,” Blue sighed.

“Not me! I feel so ready to do things!”

“We know, Ink,” Dream face-palmed with a smile. “I see you’re happier.”

The skeleton looked away, glitching heavily.

“He just needed to unload some  unrad stuff, brah,” Fresh explained.

The skeleton looked at Reaper.

Reaper looked back.

“...I-”

“ **_ [S-a-ave it-t]  _ ** S-a-ave it-t  _ {S-a-ave it-t} _ **_ ” _ ** **** he grumbled.

Blue knocked at the door, which quickly swung open. Instead of Geno or Core, though, stood a monster no one expected to see.

“...Red?”

“Blue,” he nodded, seemingly much more tired than everyone else. “Took ya long enough.”

“Traffic,” Blue sighed, fist bumping the other with a grin.

“Pff- Whatever, ya goon, get in. It’s cold out ‘ere, and Core’s  gettin ’ impatient.”

The skeletons entered, Reaper pushing down his hood and touching the ground.

“They here?” called out a voice. Red turned around.

“Yep, they’re here. All 7.”

“It took them long enough!” called out another, heels clicking as they made their way over.

“Razz!” Blue cheered tiredly, walking over to fist bump him. “And Classic?”

“Yep, ‘m here,” he yawned, walking out from where Razz came from. “What kept you all?”

“Traffic,  dunno about Fresh. P’ sure he arrived  separately .”

“Oh! My buddy an’ I just needed to ‘ave a quick chat!” he grinned, gesturing to the skeleton, who just nodded in acknowledgement and shied away.

“Well, follow us. Core went upstairs, but we’re all in the dining room,” Razz huffed, leading them all out of the hallway. “And take off your shoes! I know I’m wearing mine, but these are specifically for indoor use! I know none of you but Blue have indoor shoes!”

The travellers tiredly did as they were told, Blue taking longer as he was putting on some “indoor shoes” (they were slippers, but he hadn’t the energy to correct the other) he’d put in his inventory earlier. Error hung back for him, not even flinching when the smaller held onto his arm.

“W-Wh-Who are  t-these-ese peop-people-le ?” he asked, looking down at the other. Blue smiled up at him.

“They’re friends of mine, some of the original  Sanses of the Multiverse. Well, Classic is the  _ original _ original Sans, the other two and I are the first AU variants! Oh, and don’t mind Razz and Red; Razz can be a little stuck up, and Red can be a little rude, but they mean well!”

Reaper looked back at them both, stopping the wait for them.

“Blue...” he began, getting his attention. “...Do you think he...Do you think Geno hates me for not being able to see him for a while?”

Blue smiled sadly.

“He won’t hate you, but he will be upset. I’m sure he’ll forgive you once it’s explained, though!” he grinned. Reaper nodded, praying to Fate of all  Goddesses that the other was right.

“Ok, here we are,” Red stopped, grinning at them. Razz entered without hesitation.

“Geno. They are all here. Are you ok to begin now?” he asked, softening his voice.

“...Ok...” a voice answered, making Reaper tense up and rush to the front of the group, frowning impatiently.

“Woah, buddy, calm down,” Classic chuckled. Reaper looked him over; he was certainly much like Geno, though he wasn’t anywhere near as tense as him. “You’re all gonna see him-”

“Shut up, Class,” Razz groaned. “They’re all seeing him right now, at the same time.”

“Jus’  sayin ’,” the other shrugged. Ink grinned.

“Well, come on! Let’s fix some relationships and solve some problems!”

“I-Ink, no!” Dream groaned. But it was too late; the smallest of them all had already bounded into the room, too quickly for Razz to stop him.

“Heya, Geno! I don’t remember if you’ve met  _ me _ yet, so, uh, hi! I’m Ink!”

Geno stared at him, confused.

“...Where’s Dream, Error, and Reaper,” he asked, folding his arms.

“They’re here, don’t  wo -”

“Inky, you need to stop barrelling into things without us!” Dream complained, running in. Razz sighed and just opened the door wider, seeing as though Geno seemed to be ok with all the company.

“Oh, there’s Dream,” Geno sighed.

“Hi! It’s been way too long, I’m so sorry we couldn’t visit you!” Dream apologised. Geno laughed, still not used to these sorts of interactions.

“I-It’s fine! Is Error here?”

“H-H-Here-ere-ere,” Error said, barging through the crowd of skeleton trying to get in (“Das not cool, dawg!”). Geno smiled up at him.

“Wow, you’ve grown.”

“Yeah, don’t know why  _ that’s _ happening,” Ink chuckled.

The next to enter was the other skeleton, glitching as he forced his way through. Geno paused as he saw him.

“Uhh...I don’t know you, either.”

“ **_ [...I-I-I'm-m  _ ** **_ Fa-Fa-Fat-tal-l _ ** **_ ]  _ ** ...I-I-I'm-m  Fa-Fat-tal-l _ {...I-I-I'm-m  _ _ Fa-Fat-tal-l _ _ ] _ ,” he answered, a little unnerved at the other’s appearance. He looked  _ just like him before it happened _ . Well, that made sense; that Fresh guy  _ had _ explained everything to him. It was all just so new...So it would take him a while to get used to it all. He wasn’t either of the glitches standing in the room with him anymore.

“I-I can’t take this anymore! Let me through!” a voice called out, making Geno flinch and look in the doorway.

“H-Hang on there, pal, we’re gonna let you in, just-”

“Reaper!” Geno called out rushing to the doorframe. He couldn’t quite make the other out, given everyone but Fresh was the same size (what was  _ up _ with that, by the way?!). Razz sighed.

“Fine, fine, go to him,” he chuckled, a little envious of what the two had as he stole a quick glance in Classic’s direction. If only he wasn’t an oblivious piece of shit, he may have that sort of relationship, too.

He snapped out of his thoughts looking over at a sobbing Geno who had flung himself at the Death God, who didn’t seem surprised at all and was soon returning the gesture. Dream fidgeted, looking away with a disgruntled expression. Red sighed.

“ Aight guys, give ‘ em some space. Core wants t’ chat with ya anyway.”

With a couple of groans and sighs from Blue and Ink, the group left the couple alone, Geno still sniffling into the other’s cloak. They stood together embracing one another for what seemed like an eternity.

“’M sorry...” Geno sniffled, making the other tense up.

“You did nothing wrong, angel. Nothing at all.”

“B-But-”

“No,” the Death God sighed, pulling back slightly to look the other in the eye. “I left you for months on end because of my workload. I should have spread it out more evenly so I’d have had the time to still see you. And, besides,” he smiled softly and lovingly as he cupped the other’s cheek. “I shouldn’t have left you on such a sour note. I desperately want you to know you’ve done no harm, Gen.”

Geno just stared at him, face crumpling up again.

“I-I  ju -just,” he began, hiccupping. Reaper reached to wipe the tears away, kissing his cheek as they rolled down it.

“Deep breaths, angel. You’re safe.”

“I just love you so much and I don’t g-get how you love me!” he admitted, starting to sob uncontrollably. The other frowned, placing butterfly kisses all over his face.

“Angel,” Reaper began, humming against his forehead as the other slumped down a little. “Angel, angel,  _ angel _ , you’re so precious and beautiful and I don’t know how I ever existed without you. You’re so brave, one of the purest souls I’ve ever had the pleasure of encountering. Not even, well, I could ever taint you if I ever wanted to or tried. Not that I would,” he quickly added, moving down to peck him on the cheek again and caress the other. “I love you far too much to ever consciously hurt you. That being said, if I ever hurt you,  _ please _ tell me, love. I want to fix any pain I’ve caused you since we met...”

Geno shook his head, calming down and hiccupping again.

“T-The only time you’ve ever upset me is when...When you called me selfish,” he buried his face in the other’s cloak again, taking in the God’s smell as he tried to avoid the other’s gaze.

“...Oh angel-”

“It’s ok, t-though, I was being a bit selfish.”

“No. ..No angel it’s not ok, I still hurt you.”

“You think w-way too highly of me,” Geno chuckled shakily, sniffling a little and nuzzling into the other’s clothed neck. “I’m just someone who managed to escape your job’s grasp. You-” he looked up at the other through the corner of his eye, “-you’re a literal God. I shouldn’t really have gotten your attention, right?”

“But you did, my love. You’re just too incredible to ever ignore,” Death answered. They were both silent, and Geno shuffled back a little to stand up straight, fixing his scarf.

“...I love you, Reaps.”

The other took his hands, caressing them with his thumbs. They stood closer and closer until Reaper paused, unsure.

“...Can I kiss you?” he asked, mostly to himself. Geno laughed softly, blush lightly dusting his features.

“Well, if you don’t, I will.”

And so, once Reaper had worked up the courage, the two moved closer together once again until their mouths met, enveloping each other in a warmth of love and admiration. It was just a small peck on the lips, but for them it lasted for an eternity. Geno’s arms were latched around the other’s neck again, and the Death God caressed his love’s back gently. They parted quickly, still close together.

“Perfect...” Reaper whispered, peppering kisses across his lover’s face again. “Absolutely perfect. Beautiful.  _ Gorgeous _ .”

“Hmm, but you’re pretty too,” Geno chuckled, returning the affections.

Finally.

He was  _ happy _ .

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a "sub-chapter" where we explore what Fresh and Fatal were talking about may be coming, so stay tuned :D
> 
> [98/404]


	10. 10 - Disturbance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Happiness doesn't last forever.

Ccino padded along the snowy path, looking around cautiously in case of attackers. He’d spent the past few nights here in  Underfell , and he just had one last step until he met his other Soulmate; he needed Nightmare to attack so he could slip through a portal to his realm. So far, however, he’d had no such luck, and was spending his days buying food and walking around  Underfell . He was getting stronger as a result though, so he supposed it wasn’t all bad.

He’d managed to help the residents too whilst being there; the resident Sans came home tired and upset one day, for instance, and he had several monsters on his tail as if they were going to strike at any moment. So,  Ccino flashed his customer-service smile as he ran up to him, chattering about nonsense and guiding him home. It seemed to deter the would-be attackers, so he was satisfied.

He sighed, watching as the air escaped into puffs of vapor and looking up at the crystals at the top of the caverns above. When was he going to come? Was he going to even show up at all? He just wasn’t sure.

One day, however, he bumped into Blue of all monsters. He was standing with his Papyrus, panicking.

“Oh- Oh stars but what am I going to do?! We’ve never been attacked like this before, it- it was always the last Error who came for us anyway!” he lamented, not exactly getting a response. “I’m so,  _ so _ thankful Red’s letting us crash at his house tonight but- But oh my god!”

Ccino looked over, surprised.

“N-Nightmare’s in  Underswap ?” he asked, catching the two skeleton’s surprise. Blue sniffed, clearly stressed about the whole situation.

“Not Nightmare” he began, starting to sob. “Sh-Shadows!”

* * *

“ Underswap has fallen” are the three words  _ nobody _ in the Multiverse expected or wanted to hear. Not even Nightmare could explain the distaste he felt for the news. Said Lord of Darkness would take to shutting himself in his room for days at a time, unable to process his emotions and  uncorrupting unwilfully for hours on end. He wept, he bawled, he sobbed, and yet he just couldn’t figure out why.

And Dream  _ felt _ it.

He knew his brother was in pain; their shared bond ensured that. It was draining him of any optimistic thoughts or feelings, and had to sit with Ink and ask him to use his yellow paint to at least help him feel  _ something _ other than pain. Not that it was effective, anyway. Ink’s fake emotions didn’t project the same, warm aura as others.

“I don’t really know what to say,” Ink sighed upon hearing it, grinning from ear-to-ear despite his tone. “If we could find a way for me to feel, then maybe you’d feel better?”

So he dove head-first into that, ignoring all other responsibilities.

Ignoring Error...

And Error felt lost and alone and afraid. No one was telling him anything anymore, and had no idea about the “shadows” turning up as a result. Not even Geno would talk to him about Multiversal matters anymore; he would only coo over how he loved staying at that house with the roses from before with Reaper. And when he tried to talk to that Fatal guy...

He shivered. The glitch really needed a friend.

He slipped into a random AU one day, not caring for the theme. He just needed to get away from Dream’s stress, Ink’s mindless babbling, and Blue’s incessant weeping in lament for his AU.

And that’s where he met Killer.

“Huh, you’re still alive?” he called out, sitting on a tree branch above him. Error turned, looking around until he spotted him. Killer grinned lazily. “Good. Nightmare doesn’t mean to hurt you, ya know?”

The glitch just frowned, staring up and into the other’s voided eyes.

“...Aww, c’mon Error, it’s me! Kills!”

“...I-I-I...” Error sighed, looking down. “...I-I-I'm-m no-o- ott the-e sa-a- Ame Err-Err-Error-or-or-r.”

“Oh. Really? That uh, explains a lot actually,” he admitted, sliding off the branch and landing in front of the other. “Guess I should tell Night  ya ain’t a traitor after all.”

The two were silent, staring each other down. Killer sighed.

“ Uhh ...Look...Are you  aight ?  ‘Cause you don’t look it,” he asked sheepishly, looking up at the glitch.

Error shook his head.

“Wanna talk?”

He shook his head again.

Killer paused, debating his options.

“...Do you  wanna come back home with me?” he asked, showing some concern. “I heard that Dream- Well uh, from Nightmare that-  Uhh ...I know things are stressful and. ..You get what I’m  sayin ’, right.”

Error hesitated for a second. Should he go to the bad guys? Killer didn’t seem bad at all. And he  _ really _ needed a friend right now...

He nodded, smiling a little. Killer broke out into another grin, laughing a little.

“C’mon then, glitchy. I miss  havin ’ someone like you around.”

* * *

**h.rr.r.ppl** **.**   
U heard bout swap

 **Ur_loss_bb**   
yeah :<   
do u know what those shadowy things are because they’re quickly becoming a urban legend lmaooooooooooo

 **h.rr.r.ppl** **.**   
U tell me sweetheart   
never even seen em yet

 **Ur_loss_bb**   
oooim sweetheart now huh~   
damn though, from all the shit I keep hearing about it it makes me happy you havent them 🥺

 **h.rr.r.ppl** **.**   
Haha   
likewise <3

 **Ur_loss_bb**   
💖   
im so happy that we’re together aaaaaa

 **h.rr.r.ppl** **.**   
Im happy too <3   
gtg, Killer’s startin shit   
love u lav

 **Ur_loss_bb**   
ily2 horror bb muah <3

* * *

Lav smiled down at his phone, curled up in the corner of  Grillby’s . It was a quiet night tonight, and not many people had approached him yet. He slipped his phone into his pocket with a sigh,  glancing over as a couple of monsters called him to at least do some karaoke.

“Mm. ..Maybe in a while, sugar,” he winked in the direction of the most  insistent monster, internally shuddering at his demeanour.

He couldn’t wait for Horror to step in and show them who’s boss one of these days~.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ahahaha yes
> 
> Horrorlust ¬w¬
> 
> self-indulgent, i know, but i'm happy to announce i just got into a relationship too (yay :D!!), and i just really craved writing something similar to how our interactions have been
> 
> they're a sinner lmao, even though i wrote Lav a little more like me <3
> 
> [126/404]


	11. 11 - Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What's a home, anyway?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okokok so first of all-  
> holyshit Rocklife you've been reading my stuff for a while and i only really realised it a couple days ago when i was looking at (well, cringing and laughing at) my older work and looking at the comments and-  
> aaaaaaaaaaa i just wanna thank you it's so heartwarming that someone could ever stick around for so long :Dc
> 
> secondddd big timeskip is here  
> yayyyyyyyyyyyy  
> it means we're closer to the end though im sorry i have no self-control and it works well with the plot

“Error’s gone!” Blue wailed after searching everywhere he could think of for the glitch. Dream looked up, exhausted and somehow distraught.

“But...Why?”

“I-I don’t know! I was hiding out in  Underfell with  Papyr \- ...Stretch, uh, as you know, and I haven’t seen him since before those shadows turned up!”

Ink tapped his face with a pencil in thought, patting Dream on the head.

“Well, we can still find him. I’m sure of it.”

“And what if you  don’t..? ” Dream sighed, drained of all positive aura. It seriously worried Blue, and Ink would be concerned too if he was able to feel. “I just...What if he never comes back?”

The trio were silent in thought, Blue starting to sniffle a little.

“Well...We’ve just  gotta believe, right guys?” Ink chuckled, hoping to lift their spirits; he wasn’t good at focusing and remembering when everything was glum. And he felt like this would be important to him.

Little did he know just how much it would mean to him.

* * *

It had been 6 months.

168  _ long _ days.

Shadows of corruption had long engulfed  Underswap by now, causing it to vanish without a trace. Leaving Blue, and Stretch, its sole survivors.

Yet the AU still remained. You just couldn’t feel it, touch it, taste it. It was just an idea. A figment of someone’s imagination. A faint memory.

Until, one day, it wasn’t.

Blue strings tore the remaining code down, though the hand that stretched out to guide them trembled in fear. For he was but a ghost of the idea of who he was meant to be.

He stood in emptiness, frowning. Was this truly his purpose? Nightmare had told him so. And he...He trusted the Lord of Negativity. He listened to his troubles. He felt whole in his residence.

He didn’t feel whole here.

He was much taller than back then; he’d grown a lot. And not just physically, too. He’d really  _ changed _ as a person. As a monster. As a glitch...

He sighed, shivering. It wasn’t cold. But the blank space left behind by the destruction may have well been, given the emptiness.

He wanted to go home.

What was home?

...Not the smell of old books. Not the  color yellow.

Home was breaking up fights between idiotic friends. Home was arguing over who stole who’s chocolate. Home was keeping a certain skeleton locked out for the King’s sake, leaving him out in a dangerous world far away from home...

“...Take me home,” he whispered, finally rid of his stuttering glitches. His arm raised again, pulling code apart to get there.

He was welcomed with the smell of something burning, the sounds of Horror screaming at Dust to check the food, the sight of Nightmare  _ finally _ giving in to his new favourite as the latter nibbled on the glitch’s chocolate once mor-

... Oh, for  _ fuck’s _ sake.

“Cross!” he yelled, making the other fall off the couch in surprise. Once the monochromatic skeleton looked  up, he bolted away, precious confectionary in hand. Error grumbled, sitting on his hand-made bean bag. It had an orange stain on it, and he groaned.

“Horror, stop eating your fucking beans on my beanbag!”

He sighed as he heard the other protest from the kitchen, and he smiled softly.

It was great to be home.

* * *

Ccino wanted to go home.

He couldn’t hold out like this any longer. He couldn’t just stay here all his life.

He only had so much money,  after all .

He got up from the snow  poff he was sitting on with a sigh, considering his options.

He was a fool to try to chase Nightmare. Now he wouldn’t let him in.

“What’s up,  Cci ?” a hoarse voice asked.  Ccino turned around, sighing.

“Heya, Red. ..I’m going home tonight,” he admitted, eye-lights dull.

“You’re  givin ’ up?” he asked, concerned.  Ccino had been here for months, so to see him suddenly so downhearted was worrying for the other.

“Yeah...Jack’s probably worried sick, anyway...As much as he’d hate to admit it, anyway...”

Red stood there, not knowing what to say.

“Well...Do  ya think it  it was worth it?”

Ccino smiled sadly, looking at the ground.

“...Yeah. It was fun being away from home. But...” he sighed, wiping at the tears that started to form at the corner of his sockets. “...But I don’t belong here...My AU is long gone. I need to go back to the OT, where I’m safest...”

“...Want me t’ walk  ya there, bud?”

Ccino smiled at him, greatful.

“That would be nice...Thank you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i told you it was a big jump :')  
> also i guess i peaked at chapter 9 lmao sorry-
> 
> [322/404]


	12. 12 - Fluffy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Titles can be somewhat decieving

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i did it, finally
> 
> now to die for another 6543256789765432145678 months whilst i get stuck in my pile of space stuff again
> 
> also just to clarify there's a 1 week between the first section and second one and a 3 week difference between the second one and the last ok bye

Cross was stuck.

He’d thought getting into the “bad guys’” good books would help him get closer to Dream (wonderful, pure, happy Dream...), but it in fact did the opposite.

For starters, something had severed the connection between  th e Positivity Guardian and Nightmare, around the time  Underswap’s code had been destroyed by Error . He  wasn’t dead because the octopus himself would be too. But the link between brothers had just...vanished. Nightmare  couldn’t know where his twin was and what he was feeling (and it  _ infuriated  _ him) , so no one had a clue when to strike in attacks and where.

Secondly , Killer had (somehow) found his “notebook” (it was a diary, he just refused to admit it was), and  he’d read it, including all the  tiny details of how he wanted to run off and why he was there.  So,  suddenly , Cross was backed into a corner by the other, using his book as blackmail ; he wanted Cross to back away from Nightmare.

But there was a catch, see? Killer wanted  Nightmare and had been close to getting him before Cross turned up . But, as much as the King would despise admitting it, Nightmare was  _ obsessed _ with the idea of having not one, but  _ two _ soulmates, and now that he had one  there, he would  _ absolutely _ be  growing attached, no matter  how strong his outward repulsion to them affect ing his work was.

So, how do you survive rejecting the Emperor of Darkness?

The simple answer  is you can’t.

So Cross would be damned if he wasn’t ready to die, sitting across from the other.

Except it was all going a bit  wrong because Nightmare wanted to show him something.  He’d heard that sentence before in some very not-family-friendly scenarios, so  he thought he was well and truly  _ fucked _ .

Except, when he hesitantly nodded for him to go on, the King started  _ melting _ .

“ Whaaaat the fu-”

“Shh! Don’t make too much noise, no one can-”

“You’re melting and you expect me to not make any noise?!”

“I’m not  _ melting _ just- Just shut up and watch!”

And watch he did, as all the tar-like substances coalesced into a tiny ball where the other’s SOUL would be, seeping into  purple fabric without leaving a trace. Cross looked up, dumbfounded, and his eyes widened at what he saw.

A purple, frowning Dream.

“...Wha-”

“You can’t tell anyone,” the King (well, he looked more like a Prince now) quickly ordered, narrowing his eyes and flushing. “There’s only one other person who knows , but he doesn’t count because he’s practically a doctor, and I want to keep it that way.”

“You’re smaller.”

“You’re smaller still,” Nightmare rolled his eyes, sitting back in his seat and staring at the ceiling, frowning. The two sat in silence for a while, mostly so Cross could adjust his mind, and he knew one thing was certain  now; he wasn’t sure if he wanted to leave anymore.

“...I finally see why they all call you twins,” Cross started hesitantly, making Nightmare snap his head back down.

“We- We practically are- We- Oh my god Cross,  you dumbass,” Nightmare started, starting to laugh  condescendingly (but it wasn’t as mean as normal , Cross thought,  looking into the others large, purple eyes and vowing to keep that thought to himself) . Cross started laughing along with him, all the tension he was carrying washing away.

“It- It’s true though, you look so alike!”

“Again, we  _ are _ !”

“Well- Well- Uh- Shut up!”

Their laughter carried on a while, eventually dying down. Nightmare looked back up at the expansive ceiling, decorated with paintings of past triumphs. He smiled sadly as he saw the  centre one; a tree stump and two apples , fallen by  either side.

“...It was never going to be like this,” he sighed. “Things were going to get better. We’d show our world I wasn’t a bad  person, and we ’d help everyone...”

Cross looked up, staring at the mural in awe as Nightmare reached up and it showed a different scene, the tree whole and two figures laughing and playing.

“But the villagers had other plans...” Nightmare frowned, the scene above him turning dark, one of the figures being pursued by many different ones, the other being held back by extras. “They despised me, for I was darkne ss, and loved him, for he was light. But many thought they  didn’t need him, that if they got to the tree,  they’d be granted eternal happiness, and then  they’d dispose of us both and plant  his apples to create more joy...” he trailed off, the figures in the scene crowding the one who was being pursued. “...and mine would be destroyed. That alone is terrible because joy with no pain is  filled with emptiness. There’s supposed to be a balance and...”

Cross’ eyes widened with fear as a new scene played out above them, the once afraid figure consuming an apple and slaying his pursuers in rage. Nightmare’s hand began to tremble, voice growing hoarse.

“...And I ruined it. I ruined it all, and now  I have become what I always feared. I t ried to explain my actions to my brother but...” he trailed off , the newly replaced, frightening figure being confronted by the other, now  brighter one. “...He didn’t understand...”

The picture reverted to its original state, Nightmare’s hand shaking more as he put it down, the on ly thing breaking their silence being his sigh. Cross slowly looked back down,  still struggling to process everything.

But now he knew he wasn’t going anywhere, nor was he going to succumb to Killer’s blackmail. Because after all that, he knew that all Nightmare really needed was a friend.

And he sure as hell wasn’t going to let him down.

* * *

It was weird, being back at the coffee shop. He’d been back for  a few weeks now , sure, but  Ccino didn’t feel the same. Like he was missing something. He’d gaze out the windows for minutes at a time,  only mumbling a  quiet sorry when Jack asked him what was wrong, and quickly getting back to work.

Then, one night, he felt it; Cross, and a faint glimmer of what he assumed to be Nightmare (he still hadn’t locked eyes with him, so it was just a gues s). Their magic resonated and beckoned to him. He sat  up, eyes bleary with tiredness.  But he was wide awake now , stroking the cat on his lap and listening to the sound of his Soulbeat, trying to keep up with theirs with careful intent.  He teared up a little, his Soul beginning to ache.

He should never have left  Underfell .

He was a coward.

This is what cowards like him deserved.

Judy, the cat on his lap, meowed as tears started splashing on her pristine fur.  Ccino wiped the others away miserably, a new plan being formed as the cogs in his head started to whirr.

He was going back.

He patted Judy, a signal for her to move off her lap, to which she (unhappily) obliged. Stretching, he slipped out of bed, not bothering to pick the sheets off the floor. He got his backpack, crammed his wallet and clothes , and got changed out of his  pyjamas .  He crept downstairs, avoiding any squeaky floorboards, and went to the kitchen, tossing a few non-perishable food items in the bag and grabbing a  croissant to eat as he travelled. He headed for the door, startled as he heard a voice.

“They aren’t open, you know,” came Sasha’s voice, said Labrador Monster approaching from behi nd him. He spun around, shaking yet determined.

“I need to go back.”

The two had a  stare down , Sasha  sterner than him. He sighed, breaking their gaze.

“...You weren’t even going to leave a note.”

“You can tell Jack, I- I just-”  Ccino looked down frantically, feeling the urge to leave grow stronger and stronger. Sasha frowned pitifully, groaning as she gave in.

“Fine. He’s  gonna be upset though.”

“I know I just- I'm sorry I need-”

“Go, Cci,” she sighed, smiling. “You need this.”

And without hesitation, go he did (not without a frantic thank you, of course).

He trudged the dark streets, breaking into a sprint a few times to get there sooner. Within an hour he was at the centre of the Omega Timeline . Neon lights garishly shone out into the bustling nightlife, but  Ccino didn’t care for it. He ran, and he ran, and he ran, all the way to his destination.

He crept up the stairs, heading straight for the portal. Security had been downsized, it seemed, and a lone Human with  black hair and bold makeup was  staffing the station, chewing  gum, and only mumbling a “stay safe” once  he had been tagged as an outsider.

He rushed through the portal, running through the  Snowdin Forest of  Underfell with only one thing in mind: “find the entrance .”

He ran, he searched, he climbed trees to look out, he  leapt over logs, and was  more active than  he’d ever been in his life to find his place. He slowed down,  panting, and looking about, and he felt a tu g to his left in his soul. He looked and saw an old path,  at once going down it; he was  following his heart.

After about 20 minutes, he reached the end of the path in a clearing, and there he saw-

“No...” he panted out, staggering back at the sight of the other. The figure turned around inquisitively at the sound, a little surprised.

“You’re not supposed to be here,” he started, voice  _ nothing _ like how  Ccino had remembered it.

“Y-You...You’re-”

“Error. Not the one you knew probably; I’ve had to explain that several times today alone, and don’t get me started on the past few months ...” he mumbled the last part, seemingly tired.  Ccino shook with nervousness, swallowing down his fear and looking straight up into his mismatched eyes.

“I want to see Cross.”

The destroyer raised an eyebrow.

“Just Cross? Sure, fine, you’re not allowed near the octopus, though,” he shrugged, not caring anymore.  Perhaps h e woul d convince the monochrome skeleton to leave his chocolate alone. The  idea of that alone had him convincing himself it was  a promising idea , and  opened a glitchy, fragmented portal.

Ccino gazed at it fearfully, but sucked in a breath and strode in, hands grasping at his backpack’s straps and eyes screwed shut .

He opened his eyes to a large hallway, the ceiling seemingly miles away with black brass chandeliers  lighting it up every 10 meters or so. He walked through, looking around in amazement as it struck him; he was in the Multiverse’s most dangerous Monster’s home. His soulmate...

He reached a large mahogany door, carved with intricate, swirling patterns. He tried to open  it, but it was locked. He rattled the golden handle a little, frowning as he felt his soul trying to guide him to the room beyo nd. He sighed, starting to figure out a way in as a voice inside called out:

“Who’s there?”

Cross.

Ccino , rattled at the door handles once more, trying to get his attention.

“I said, who’s there? I’m armed,” Cross called out, the sound of metal being summoned in an electric, crackling manner. “Answer me, please.”

“...Knock  knock ,”  Ccino answered,  panicking, and mentally hitting himself for  coming up with _ that _ of all answers.

“...Who’s there?” came a deeper, reluctant voice.  Ccino panicked again; what the hell kind of joke was he going to tell an armed soldier and, most like, the King of Evil himself?! He gulped, nervous, a took in a deep breath to steady himself.

“S-Scold.”

“Scold who?” came Cross’ voice, clearly dreading the answer.

“S-Scold outside, l-let me  in... ?”

There was silence before a low chuckle was heard.

“Let them in, Cross.”

“But you said I’d ha-”

“I was against it at first, but I don’t care anymore. Let them in.”

The door clicked, slowly swinging open with Cross coming into view, not as dressed up as he was when they’d met.  Ccino looked down at him, flushing.

“ Uh , hi,” he waved. Cross hummed in response, looking away.

“... Well, uh, I guess you’re allowed in huh?”

“Yeah...Can I?”

“R-Right, sure,” Cross answered, much less confident than  Ccino had remembered. He shuffled to the side, letting him walk in and look around.

I was a study, paintings and murals adorning the ceiling, bookcases adorning the walls and giant windows at the other side of the room, concealed b y big, deep purple curtains. A mahogany desk sat in the middle of the room, and there, sitting on the other side of it, was just the person he’d sought out to see.

Nightmare, King- no,  _ Guardian _ of Negativity.

* * *

Error was good at breaking things.

Rules, for instance; he’d made portals into the Omega Timeline repeatedly over the past few months, just to check in on...Well, some old friends. Th at was the excuse he gave to Nightmare, and it worked so he kept with it.

But what was making him go back was Dream.

He was drowning, his light burning out as he toiled away to help Ink with his condition, help Blue (and his weird brother, who apparently e xists) with temporary housing , console Geno, and to put the cherry on the cake he was searching everywhere for the glitch. He needn’t look far; Error was often somewhere nearby, even if he didn’t see him.

And then, it happened. Nightmare took advantage of a carelessly left open portal and, despite not quite knowing where it led, quickly took the opportunity to  _ strike _ .

Ccino , having finally found his way to the King, was asleep, and wouldn’t even lea rn of the attack for years to come.

Error, as usual, had been hiding out by the house that Geno and Reaper now lived in after being reunited all that time ago , watching over Dream from outside (it had snowed the night  before, so it wasn’t very pleasant, but he put up with it  nonetheless ). 

And then the ground shook.

Error leapt up into a rather bushy tree as Reaper floated outside in curiosity , st r uggling to get a hold on the branch as it shook again. He could see Reaper narrowing his eyes, unaffected by the tremor whilst being a foot off the ground . Geno and Dream hastily ran out after him after this second one, both looking  as equally worried  as the other  (Dream _ worried _ ,  that  was a scary thought) . Error frowned, trying in his head to logically come up with an explanation.

Then the ground shook  again, and the sky went dark, all the birds  staying after the tremors going silent. He hissed under his breath, catching sight of Dream’s hands flying to his mouth as they figured out what this all meant .

“Nightmare!” they both said, Error of course much more angrily and quiet than Dream. Trust  _ him _ to forget to close a portal for the King to find.

“You- You need to stay here, both of y- No, Reaper, I don’t care if you’re Death itself, just- No! Stay here, keep Geno and Fatal safe if worse comes to worse!” Dream started yelling, summoning his bow as he ha stily looked around to try and find the source of the negative energy.

“ Dream don’t do this,” Reaper warned, voice low in frustration as he gripped onto his scythe. “I have to be there, something might go-”

“Wrong? Things go wrong all the time, if I can...If I can get over Error, like  you keep telling me to,  I’ll be  just fine ! I can always call Blue and Ink!”

“Ink’s out doing things and can’t drive!” Geno protested, clutching his scarf. It was clear he was fearful, but his Determination burned enough for him to endure it. “And goodness knows how long it might take Blue-”

“Blue’s out on the outskirts of the town centre with Red, Class and Razz, he’ll make it, just- Just please,  _ please _ stay!”

And like that, Dream took off after  deciding the direction he needed to go in. Reaper growled, starting to follow, but Geno held him back.

“Reaper no, he might be right!”

“Angel- Angel there’s so many for today-”

“ _ Later. Please,”  _ Geno begged with a pleading look in his eye. Reaper hu ffed, staying put, but Error was off before he could listen to the rest of their conversation, discretely running across the sub-urban village’s houses’ roofs ,  following the Positivity Guardian .

He was going to rip Nightmare a fresh new asshole, mark his words.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [350/404]  
> (oh boy)

**Author's Note:**

> [30/404]


End file.
